Chapter Text
Chapter One
“Hyung? Are you even listening to us?”
Soobin’s head snaps to his friends and he smiles apologetically.
“Sorry, got sidetracked. What were you saying?”
Taehyun shakes his head but continues to speak. “I said don’t you think he’s cute?”
Soobin turns his head to where Taehyun points and frowns.
Across the lecture hall, two boys sit separate from the rest of the class. One is taller, with black hair almost long enough to be a mullet and he has clear circular glasses sit on his nose. He sits next to a smaller boy with silver-like hair who talks animatedly.
Soobin recognizes the two as Yeonjun and Beomgyu.
Normally classes would be big enough that Soobin wouldn’t know anybody’s names other than his two friends. However, since enough people have dropped out, he’s begun to pick up on names and faces easier.
Yeonjun is difficult to not know.
No matter who you’re friends with, chances are that they have a story to tell you about Yeonjun. Not all of them are kind stories either. Soobin heard from a friend that Yeonjun had hooked up with a girl to get her notes and ghosted her the very next day. There were just one too many stories for Soobin’s liking so he’d stayed away from the boy all together.
Beomgyu on the other hand was friendly with everybody. He greeted Soobin and spoke to him briefly on more than one occasion. As friendly as he was though, he latched onto Yeonjun more than anybody else. The two seemed to go everywhere together, much like Soobin with Taehyun and Kai.
“What’s with the face?” Kai teases.
Soobin rolls his eyes and glances back down at his notes. They’re in class waiting for their psychology lecturer to arrive but fifteen minutes have passed and he still hasn’t made an appearance. Kai and Taehyun have been talking in the meantime with Soobin occasionally pitching in.
“He just has beef with Yeonjun,” Taehyun explains with a tsk.
At the mention of the other’s name, Soobin’s face scrunches up causing Kai to giggle.
“What’s your problem with him anyway? And I wasn’t talking about Yeonjun-ssi by the way, I meant his friend,” Taehyun starts packing his things away when it’s clear that the lecturer has no intentions of appearing.
Soobin sighs and follows suit, packing his stationary into his bag. “I’ve just heard... a lot about him, not all of it good.”
“If I listened to what people said about you, we wouldn’t be friends Hyung,” Kai admits.
Soobin glares at him as they get up to shuffle out of the venue.
Taehyun’s eyes linger on the pair long enough that the smaller one, Beomgyu, catches his eye and waves. The two of them also seem to have given up on the lecture.
Taehyun waves back coolly but Soobin doesn’t miss the way his ears tinge red. Soobin’s eyes drift to Yeonjun who looks as uninterested as ever. In fact, Soobin‘s pretty sure the only time that bored look ever left his face was when Beomgyu spoke to him.
It rather annoys Soobin.
“It’s not just what people say,” Soobin explains once they’re out of earshot. “Rumors aside, he comes off as arrogant and snobbish.”
“I thought you were mean the first time we met,” Kai says pointedly.
Soobin swats his arm as they walk, “Brat. I’m just reserved in front of people I don’t know.”
Kai rubs his arm ruefully. “ Aish Hyung! I know you forget but you hit hard. Have you seen the size of your hand? Anyway, I know you’re shy now but that’s my point. I didn’t know you were shy and it came off as rude. Maybe it’s the same for him.”
The three of them flop down onto the grass of the lawns outside the library.
It’s sunny outside and the heat would’ve been unbearable if not for the cool breeze that blows every now and then.
“Kai’s right, you know. For once,” Taehyun says. He ducks out of the way as Kai moves to smack him. Soobin turns his head and shields his eyes as he looks at Taehyun. The red hair he’s sporting makes it difficult to look at him in the bright light.
“You can’t just judge people based on what you think they’re like because of some rumors, Hyung,” he says.
“But how do so many bad rumors spread about one person? It doesn’t make sense, he must be doing something dodge if more than one person is saying so. Also why are you defending him? I thought you liked his friend?”
Taehyun sighs. “Nevermind, Hyung. Did you do any research for the essay yet? I’ve been struggling...”
-ˋˏ ༻❁༺ ˎˊ-
“Hyung, I think I might die ,” Beomgyu groans.
Yeonjun looks up from his laptop to spare a look at the younger who’s sprawled out dramatically on his bed.
“It’s an essay, BG not a death sentence,” Yeonjun says after returning to his screen. His concentration is broken again by Beomgyu’s head blocking his screen. The younger’s rather round head shields Yeonjun’s view of the article he‘s reading. He stares into Beomgyu’s puppy dog eyes and tugs on his hair playfully.
“Yah okay BG you have my attention now.”
Beomgyu breaks out into a smile and moves his face away as Yeonjun closes his laptop.
Yeonjun shifts on the bed so that he’s sitting cross legged and opposite Beomgyu who always seems to vibrate with a never ending energy.
“Did you see? He looked at me today!” Beomgyu yells.
“Who?” Yeonjun asks fully knowing who Beomgyu’s referring to.
Beomgyu rolls his eyes and nudges Yeonjun.
“Soobin-ssi!” He exclaims.
“Ahh...” Yeonjun trails off with little enthusiasm.
He’s well aware of Beomgyu’s long-standing crush on the tall boy in their psychology class. He’s just not particularly fond of it.
Yeonjun has caught Soobin frowning at him more than once. He‘s sure it has to do with those stupid rumors but Beomgyu insists that Yeonjun‘s imagining it and not everybody hates him.
Yeonjun would’ve agreed if not for the fact that he notices all too well how the conversation suddenly stops when he walks up to a group of people. There‘s also the matter that he has seen people go out of their way to sit as far away from him as possible.
“Hyung I’m sure he’s smart enough not to believe those stupid rumors,” Beomgyu says as if reading Yeonjun’s mind. Yeonjun isn’t surprised. Out of everybody he knows, and it isn’t an extensive list, Beomgyu knows him best.
“I bet you’d have a better chance of approaching him if you weren’t my friend though,” Yeonjun jokes.
Yeonjun isn’t blind. He sees how Beomgyu naturally attracts people and he knows that Beomgyu would have more friends if he didn’t associate himself with Yeonjun.
Yeonjun doesn’t care that people don’t want to be his friend.
He does care about holding Beomgyu back.
Beomgyu frowns and sags a little.
“Don’t say that, Hyung. You’re my best friend. I’d rather have just one of you than ten other friends. YJ and BG, it’s always been like that.”
Yeonjun smiles at the younger and ruffles his hair, “I’m just kidding BG. Are you getting soft on me?”
Beomgyu grunts and swats Yeonjun’s hands away. The two of them forfeit work for the rest of the afternoon and decide to play games instead. When the sky begins to turn orange, Yeonjun gathers his things.
“You sure you don’t want to stay over? You know mum wouldn’t mind.”
Yeonjun shakes his head, “I have to have dinner with my dad. It’s Thursday remember?”
Beomgyu’s happy expression turns sour, “Do you want me to come with you?”
Yeonjun laughs but there’s not much humor to it. “You know I’d love you to be there with me so I don’t have to suffer alone but you know my dad. Maybe next time.”
Beomgyu sighs and Yeonjun nudges him. “Hey it’s okay. I’ll only be there for an hour.”
Yeonjun can still see the doubt in Beomgyu’s eyes so he pulls him into a quick hug. “I’ll text you after,” Yeonjun assures him.
Beomgyu hugs him back before leading Yeonjun out.
He hops into his car and reluctantly makes his way to his dad’s house.
Yeonjun hates using his car.
He feels a little guilty that he does too. Lots of kids would kill to have a car, let alone a convertible. But he only has the car because of his dad and he’s grown to hate anything his dad gives him. His dad only gifted it to him because he didn’t want his son walking around town like some “poor person.”
Yeonjun would’ve refused but his mom insisted he take it. She wants Yeonjun to live a good life and thinks she’d be embarrassing him by letting him use her old Sedan. Yeonjun tried explaining to her that he doesn’t care about stuff like that but she wouldn’t listen so he reluctantly accepted the car.
By the time he arrives at his dad’s obnoxious mansion, Yeonjun’s mood has only gotten worst. He waits impatiently in the driveway for somebody to buzz him in and eventually parks next to one of the five other cars outside the house.
He doesn’t bother knocking and throws the door open, slipping his shoes off in the process.
He flashes his dad’s butler a smile and a small bow before making his way to the dining room.
Nobody’s there yet but he seats himself in his usual chair, as far away from his dad as possible, and waits.
He whips his phone out and reads some emails. He frowns at the one and texts Beomgyu about it.
Did you see the email about the groups ?
Beomgyu’s reply comes quick.
Ye. Apparently the professor walked in not long after we left and split the class into groups for a presentation. We’ll be paired with whoever’s remaining. Guess we’ll see next class. rip.
Yeonjun groans. He’d rather die than do group work. It‘s always chaos.
“Yeonjun-ah.”
His thoughts are interrupted by a woman’s voice. When he looks up he sees his dad’s wife. Yeonjun grimaces as he gets up to greet her.
It’s not that she‘s a terrible person -it‘s the exact opposite. She’s really kind and always makes a point to ask Yeonjun about his interests. If he’s being completely honest, she probably pays more attention to him than his actual dad.
“Sae-eomma, ah it’s nice to see you,” He greets her politely as she gives him a peck on his cheek. She takes her seat opposite him and smiles kindly. She’s about to say something as Yeonjun moves to sit down but she’s interrupted by a high pitched squeal.
A chubby little boy speeds into the room and throws himself at Yeonjun’s legs.
“Yeonie! Yeonie!”
Yeonjun plasters a smile on his face and looks down at his half brother.
Another thing that he feels guilty about.
It’s not like the boy has done anything to deserve Yeonjun’s secret hate. He’s a sweet boy and seems to look forward to Yeonjun’s visits.
He just looks too much like Yeonjun’s dad for his liking.
Yeonjun crouches down and hugs him.
“Renjunnie! You’re bigger than you were last week!”
The little boy beams at the compliment and bursts into a fit of giggles as Yeonjun tickles his tummy.
“Yeonjun,” comes a deeper voice.
Yeonjun’s smile falters when he hears his father. He stands up and regards his dad, trying his best to not glower at him. He gives him a curt nod and gently peels Renjun off of his legs so he can sit down again.
His father takes the head of the table as usual with Renjun on his left and Seri on his right.
The dinner almost goes relatively smooth for once. Yeonjun blocks out most of their conversation and answers any questions Seri‘s kind enough to ask with; “Yes”, “No,” or “I don’t know.”
Almost.
“...your mother, Yeonjun,”
Yeonjun’s head snaps up. “What?”
“I said,” His father repeats, “You should focus more on your studies instead of that dancing you do, I don’t want you to land up like your mother.”
He says all this matter of factly while cutting his steak. Seri looks at him in alarm and touches his hand. “ Darling -“
But she doesn’t get to finish her sentence because Yeonjun’s already standing up from his seat and moving towards the door.
“Choi Yeonjun where are you going? We’re not done with dinner.” He ignores his father's stern voice as he slips on his shoes. “YEONJUN If you leave now I will cut off your allowance,”
At that, Yeonjun pauses.
It’s not that he needs the allowance.
He thinks of his mother coming home past seven every day and waking up at five just to make ends meet.
He thinks of her forced smile when he asks if she‘s okay with paying rent on her own, her late night phone calls asking friends for a loan that she doesn’t think he can hear.
Yeonjun forces himself to turn back around. He moves robotically back to his seat and sits down.
His father smiles.
Yeonjun resists the urge to reach across the table and strangle him with the silk tie hanging loosely around his throat.
He doesn’t register anything else for the rest of the night and counts slowly, blocking out the background chatter. Seri doesn’t bother asking him more questions and she silences Renjun’s constant questions which he’s thankful for.
After reaching nine hundred, he’s finally able to leave. He bids his father and everybody else a farewell with a calm he’s surprised he still has and drives home.
It takes everything in him to not crash the car.
-ˋˏ ༻❁༺ ˎˊ-
“If you were assigned a group yesterday, please separate into them now and begin discussing your project. If you were not, please come to the front as I call out your student number.”
Soobin grunts.
Group projects are the worst.
It’s rare to find a solid group to work with - either there’s somebody who wants to take control of everything or nobody seems to want to work. His chances of landing up in a group with Kai and Taehyun are actually pretty high considering how few people there are left to sort. He‘s just worried about who else he might land up with.
He hears his number being called up and flashes a worried look at Taehyun and Kai when two unfamiliar numbers follow his. Nobody gets up though so they must not be in class. Thankfully, after the two unknown numbers he hears Kai and Taehyun’s numbers and he breathes a sigh of relief.
The professor, a skinny man in his late forties with a bushy white beard, frowns when he realizes only three out of the five numbers he’s called are present.
He lets out an annoyed huff. “Alright, go to the back of the class. I’ll direct your two remaining members there if they decide to pitch today.”
With that, the trio shuffles to where the professor pointed and settles their belongings on the desk near the back of the room.
“At least we’re together,” Kai says once they’ve organized their chairs into a little circle.
“Yeah, it’ll be easy to work with the three of us no matter who the other two are,” Taehyun reasons.
He rests his head on Kai’s shoulder and yawns.
“Did you not sleep well?” Soobin asks with a frown.
Taehyun shakes his head causing his red hair to cover his big eyes.
“Helped Kai study for Philosophy. We have a test coming up,” he explains.
Kai pats Taehyun’s head affectionately, “Sorry Hyung, but at least I know what’s going on now.”
Soobin smiles at the two. He can’t picture what his life would be like without them. He cherishes their little trio more than he can begin to explain.
Everything is easy with Kai and Taehyun. In the past, Soobin didn’t have the best luck with friends. He had a long list of friends who had left him and excluded him for numerous reasons; being awkward and not outgoing enough were two of the biggest ones.
People wrote him off as boring because he didn’t go out often. Lots of them even said that he comes off as edgy and anti-social but that’s where they’re wrong. Soobin loves spending time with people, he just needs to recharge every now and then. He also doesn’t mind silently observing people around him and listening instead of talking 24/7.
Lots of people didn’t get that though so it often ended up sour. Taehyun and Kai didn’t seem to care that Soobin didn’t talk much or that he refused some of their invites to go out. They’d pitch up on Soobin’s doorstep with ice-cream and watch movies. Either way, they always seem to end up together.
“Who are our other two members?” Kai wonders out loud.
Soobin scoffs. “I don’t know but I’m not looking forward to it. They’re probably going to let us do all the work and take credit for it, I mean they’re not even in class today.”
Somebody clears their throat loudly behind Soobin.
“Ah,” A voice says as Soobin whips around. His cheeks redden when he finds Yeonjun and Beomgyu standing there looking at their group. Beomgyu stands with his hands in his pockets, seemingly amused at the situation but Yeonjun seems unimpressed as he eyes Soobin.
“I can assure you we don’t intend on doing nothing and I’m not one to take credit for work I didn’t do. Can’t trust everybody to do good work now can we,” Yeonjun says bluntly.
He sets his bag on the desk and sits casually on the table as he looks at the group.
Soobin wants to crawl into a hole and stay there until this project is over.
“Knock it off Hyung,” Beomgyu says with a light shove. He smiles at the group apologetically. “Don’t mind YJ, he’s just joking,”
Yeonjun snorts but doesn’t say anything else.
Taehyun coughs. “YJ?”
Soobin’s sure Taehyun knows that YJ means Yeonjun but he appreciates the younger’s effort to diffuse the tension.
Beomgyu nods his head and pulls a chair from a nearby table. He places it next to Kai who looks at him with a sheepish look, no doubt still embarrassed by Soobin.
“Yeah sorry I forgot not everybody knows each other. I think I’ve spoken to you guys before but it’s university so I’m sure you don’t remember. I’m Beomgyu and this is Yeonjun Hyung, or YJ as I call him,” Beomgyu removes the bag from his back as he introduces the two of them.
“Sunbaenim to you guys,” Yeonjun adds. Soobin would’ve thought he’s serious if not for the eye roll Beomgyu gives him. He has the urge to ask the older if he’s failed before considering he’s older than all of them by the sounds of it but he resists the urge. They’re already off to a rough start and they have an entire project to get through.
It’s more likely that the older had taken a gap year like Soobin had and maybe worked for another before deciding to study anyway.
Soobin shakes his head to get out of the daze he’s been in since the two arrived. “Ah yeah of course I remember you Beomgyu.”
Beomgyu beams at that. Before he can respond, Yeonjun chips in. “Nothing memorable about me, Dimples?”
Soobin pauses at the nickname.
Actually, I’ve heard lots of memorable things about you. I just don’t want to embarrass you.
He almost opens his mouth to say as much but one look at Yeonjun tells him that’s probably what he’s expecting.
He stares at Soobin with his head cocked to the side and a slight pout on his plump lips.
Soobin feels his eye twitch.
“It’s Soobin, Hyung, and no I haven’t had the pleasure of talking to you much. Anyways, this is Huening Kai and Taehyun,” He gestures to the two boys who smile, still a little unsure of Yeonjun. Soobin makes a point to tell Taehyun I told you so later.
“Don’t you two also do Philosophy?” Beomgyu asks, gesturing to Kai and Taehyun.
Soobin can see why the silver haired boy could make friends so easily. He keeps a steady conversation going with the three of them for the rest of the lecture and makes it seem as if he’s known Kai and Taehyun for forever. It‘s easier to talk to him as opposed to Yeonjun who sits quietly and only chips in when Beomgyu asks for his opinion on the project.
Soobin does try to focus on the project but he swears he can feel Yeonjun’s cat like eyes on him every now and then but whenever he looks at the elder, he finds Yeonjun looking at Beomgyu instead.
Soobin finds himself thinking about all the rumors he’s heard about Yeonjun as he watches him sit there.
The story about the notes was only one instance. There had been another that Yeonjun had hooked up with multiple girls while he was in a relationship and that he’s really flashy with his money. Soobin could believe that, considering he saw the boy arrive at campus in a fancy convertible. Soobin could’ve ignored all that. Having money isn’t a crime and cheating is shit but it isn’t the worst possible thing a person could do.
The one that really changed Soobin’s perspective of Yeonjun is when he heard that a girl he’d been hooking up with had said he’d been drinking and things had gotten out of hand.
Soobin hadn’t gotten any more details but it sounded like Yeonjun had gotten physical with the girl. It was enough to make him want to stay away from the boy. He isn’t sure Kai and Taehyun know, but Beomgyu has to with the way he speaks to so many people.
He doesn’t realize he’s been staring at Yeonjun for some time until Yeonjun finally makes eye contact with him and raises an eyebrow. “Are you planning on answering or?”
Soobin shakes his head and wills the blush creeping up his neck to go away. He ignores the way his friends exchange glances and clears his throat. “Sorry Beomgyu-ah, what were you saying?”
Beomgyu smiles at him. “No worries, Hyung. I was just saying we should probably exchange numbers so we can discuss the project further. Class is about to end.”
“Ah yeah of course.”
Soobin, Kai and Taehyun give their numbers to Beomgyu who takes it upon himself to make a group chat.
When class is over they say their goodbyes and promise to talk more on the group later.
Soobin, Kai and Taehyun are on their way to Soobin’s car when he hears laughter behind him. He turns around to see that Beomgyu and Yeonjun are not too far behind, completely forgetting that students in the same year share the same parking space. Beomgyu has his arm thrown over Yeonjun’s shoulders and pulls him close so that he can squish his cheek against Yeonjun’s. He has to stand on his toes to do so because of Yeonjun’s height and Yeonjun shoves him off but Soobin can see him crack a small smile.
Soobin quickly turns around before the two can see him staring.
“Hyung?” He hears Taehyun call.
“Mhmm?”
“You’re pulling a face again,” he notes.
Soobin doesn’t say anything as he climbs into his car. It’s nowhere near as fancy as a convertible but it works and that’s all Soobin can be thankful for.
He grips the steering wheel and stares straight ahead. Outside, Kai and Taehyun shove each other as they fight over who gets to ride shotgun. After some bickering, that probably ends with Taehyun putting the younger into a headlock, Taehyun hops into the passenger seat.
Kai climbs into the back seat grudgingly but flicks Taehyun’s ear before darting to the corner of the car where Taehyun can’t reach him. At a first glance, you’d think that Kai has the upper hand. He’s nearly as tall as Soobin now, a steady six foot that’s sure to continue growing and Taehyun is only just five foot ten. But Kai’s nothing other than a giant baby.
He has a love for plushies and cuddles Taehyun and Soobin whenever they’re stressed. He also insists that they all sleep in one bed during sleepovers despite his large size. Having Kai around feels a lot like having a golden retriever as a pet.
Taehyun on the other hand is probably the reason the phrase ‘dynamite comes in small packages’ exists. What he lacks in height he definitely makes up in spirit and if Soobin were to call one of the two to help him in a fight, he’d pick Taehyun. He also comes off as intimidating sometimes and Soobin blames it on the younger’s large eyes and quick wit.
“I’m confused,” he announces to nobody in particular.
Kai and Taehyun stop their bickering to look at Soobin.
“About?” Taehyun stares at him and it’s true that it always feels like Taehyun is seeing something deeper when he looks at you.
“Yeonjun.”
Kai pipes up. “Are you upset that he called you out for talking shit, Hyung?”
Soobin glares at the black haired boy in the rearview mirror.
“No, NingNing. I’ve told you both before, I’ve just heard things about him that I’m not sure about.”
Taehyun sighs. “Look if it’s about that rumor of him ghosting that girl after the notes-“
“It’s not,” He says quickly.
“Well then what is it?”
Soobin tells them what he heard from the other girl.
Taehyun presses his lips together and the car is silent for a while.
“I don’t think I want to work with him anymore,” Kai whispers softly.
Soobin grimaces. “Yeah me neither,” He taps on the steering wheel in thought. “Should we email the professor?”
“Let’s... meet up with them briefly so we can tell them. Yeonjun might be a dick but Beomgyu-ssi deserves to know before we leave them in the dust I think,” Taehyun suggests.
Soobin starts the car, pulling out of the parking lot. The scene of Yeonjun cracking a smile with Beomgyu’s arm around him still plays in the back of his head. He looked so calm it’s suddenly hard for Soobin to picture him getting violent.
Nope, stupid thought, Soobin thinks to himself.
“Are you sure you’re not just suggesting this because you wanna see Beomgyu again Taehyunnie?” Soobin teases the red head to distract himself.
Kai snickers and though Soobin’s eyes are on the road, he can feel the intensity of Taehyun’s glare on him as he drives.
“Never mind let’s just email the professor,” Taehyun grumbles.
“Hyung did you see how he was staring at Beomgyu Hyung earlier?” Kai pipes up.
“Aish you BRAT I was not staring at him!” Taehyun turns around in his seat to take a swipe at Kai.
Soobin smiles and listens to the familiar background bickering, any thoughts of Yeonjun wiped clean from his mind.
-ˋˏ ༻❁༺ ˎˊ-
“Hyungie?”
Yeonjun’s eyes snap open.
He blinks several times at his laptop that sits open, the word document he was using to work on his essay still open. He leans forward and squints, rubbing his eyes to make sense of what he
was typing, but it seems he must have fallen asleep in the process because there’s a lot of random keyboard smashes and spelling errors.
“You fell asleep,” Beomgyu confirms his thoughts. He reaches out to touch Yeonjun’s shoulder and Yeonjun turns to look at him.
His brows furrow in concern and he pouts at Yeonjun.
“Ah I’m fine Beommie, just a little tired,” he assures his friend.
Beomgyu’s frown deepens.
Okay so maybe Yeonjun’s more than a little tired.
After he got home from his dad’s last night he found his mom passed out on the couch with the television still on. Nothing was strange about the sight, she’d often wait for Yeonjun to return on
Thursday’s after he visited his dad but more often than not, she fell asleep waiting.
He’d dutifully carried her to bed and tucked her in after doing a general clean up of the house and retreated to his room afterwards. Feeling too upset to sleep, he’d spent the rest of the night selling his clothes and looking for a job so he could stop relying on his dad.
He felt a little bad about the clothes.
Seri’s made a name for herself in the fashion industry as a designer so she’s always sending Yeonjun expensive clothing. They always fit perfectly and have a knack for complimenting his long legs and skin tone. Yeonjun allows himself to indulge by trying them on once before putting it up for sale. He does it for two reasons: One, he needs the money for his mum and two, even if he didn’t he’d still feel too bad wearing gifts from his stepmom in front of his actual mum.
He’d selfishly kept one jacket; a big, brown fluffy one. It’s warm and puffy, making him look a lot bigger than he actually is. It isn’t even the best looking out of all the clothing he’s received from Seri by far. But when Yeonjun had tried it on it had brought him a sense of comfort and warmth so he’d allowed himself to keep it. He still avoids wearing it around his mother though.
After he felt like he’d sold enough clothes, Yeonjun had scrolled for hours searching for jobs. It took him a while to find something but eventually he did. It’s a job at a bakery not too far from university. It wasn’t much but it was something so he jotted down the details to tackle later. By the time he’d found the job the birds were chirping outside.
He’d managed maybe half an hour of sleep before he heard his mother waking up in the room beside his to get ready for work.
So yeah, maybe Yeonjun is exhausted.
“Are you gonna stay over? You might as well, we have to meet Soobin Hyung tomorrow and his friends to discuss the project. We might as well stick together,” Beomgyu suggests.
Yeonjun almost says yes.
If he’s being honest he could use Beomgyu’s company. His visit to his dad last night took a lot more out of him than he anticipated. But the image of his mom coming home to an empty house on the one day she gets off early makes him shake his head.
“Sorry BG, I can’t leave my mom alone,” he explains with a sad smile.
Beomgyu smacks his forehead. “Aish of course! Sorry Hyung I forgot. I’ll just come to you then.”
Without waiting for an answer, he hops off the bed and begins packing a bag, already talking at a hundred miles per hour about a tv show he just finished.
Yeonjun can't help but smile a little. He wishes he could have half of Beomgyu’s energy, the boy never seems to run out of it.
“Are you sure BG? You know there’s not a lot to do at my house and it’s Friday…” Yeonjun trails off.
Beomgyu drops the t-shirt he’s folding suddenly and turns around. He places a hand on Yeonjun’s shoulder and looks up at Yeonjun, all the humour and amusement wiped uncharacteristically clean from his face.
Yeonjun raises an eyebrow at the sudden change in attitude but looks down at Beomgyu in concern.
“Yeonjun Hyung,” Beomgyu states very seriously, “Do you hate me? Be honest.”
He yelps when Yeonjun lunges at him and puts him into a headlock to ruffle his head.
“Aish! What have I told about being dramatic you brat!” Yeonjun shuffles sideways as Beomgyu squirms under his tight grip. His foot catches on the fallen t-shirt, causing them both to fall to the floor.
Yeonjun bears the brunt of the fall and lands with a hard smack on the wooden floor. He cushions Beomgyu’s fall who lands on his stomach and knocks the air out of him. Beomgyu bursts into a fit of laughter as he rolls off Yeonjun who wheezes and clutches his stomach.
“I… hate… you....” He manages to choke out in between laughing and gasping for air.
They both lie there on the floor for a while, laughing and regaining their composure only to burst into another fit of giggles.
Eventually Beomgyu gets up on all fours and crawls to where Yeonjun lies with his hand clutching his stomach.
His eyes nearly disappear from the big smile plastered on his face but Yeonjun can still see the sparkle in them as he stares up at Beomgyu.
“Hyung, you know I love you right?” He asks Yeonjun. “No amount of money or dumb rumor can change that.”
It’s this moment that plays through his mind later that night as he lies awake, staring at the younger who’s curled up next to him sound asleep.
There are a lot of things that bother Yeonjun.
He hates his dad, his mum is more of an empty shell than a mother, he’s studying something he’s not invested in and people at university hate him because of a bunch of stupid rumors.
But he brushes a lot of it off.
Sure, some days feel more difficult than others but he knows other people have it worse.
None of it feels as awful as it could be because he has Beomgyu.
He can forgive the world because of the way Beomgyu’s eyes light up every time he sees Yeonjun.
Almost like everything is worth the struggle if he gets to hold Beomgyu’s hand when he sleeps on nights like this.
He sighs and closes his eyes, pushing away thoughts of money and his dad and focuses on Beomgyu’s light snores instead.
Tomorrow’s another day.
-ˋˏ ༻❁༺ ˎˊ-
“Can you try to be nicer today?” Beomgyu begs.
Yeonjun looks up from his phone to glance at the younger who looks at him pleadingly.
He places a hand on his chest and fakes being offended. “What do you mean? I’m the nicest .”
Beomgyu merely rolls his eyes in response.
They’re sitting in a cafe not too far from university, waiting for Soobin and his two friends to arrive. It’s not too busy for a Saturday morning but there are enough people that the cafe is filled
with a chorus of boiling kettles and soft chatter from surrounding tables.
“Seriously though, YJ. Are you trying to make them hate you?”
“No,” he replies slightly annoyed.
Maybe Beomgyu didn’t see it but Yeonjun has become used to people giving him the side eye so he didn’t miss how Soobin kept on glaring at him yesterday.
“What do you like about him anyway?” Yeonjun asks instead.
Sure, Yeonjun gets that Soobin’s handsome - he isn’t dumb. He’s tall with dark hair and dimples, he understands why Beomgyu has a crush on him. But there are lots of tall, good looking boys with dimples on campus. He just doesn’t see why Beomgyu would go for Soobin out of all of them.
Yeonjun says as much and Beomgyu looks at him expectantly. “Oh yeah? Like who?”
“What about that Jaehyun guy? He’s older than us, but I see him around campus often, I think he’s doing his Masters or something. He has dimples.”
Beomgyu swats his arm. “I’m not going after him because of his dimples, YJ,” He pauses. “Jaehyun is cute though, you’re right about that. Too good looking to date though.”
Yeonjun shoots the younger a look and rubs his arm. “Then what is it?”
“Well, have you spoken to him?”
Yeonjun snorts. “How can I when all he does is glare at me?”
Beomgyu sighs. “Hyung -”
He doesn’t get to answer because just then, the door of the café opens and the trio walks in.
Their elbows are all linked but they break away once they spot Beomgyu waving them over.
“Soobin Hyung!” Beomgyu exclaims and gets up to greet him.
“Beomgyu-ah,” Soobin says in a manner of greeting.
Yeonjun narrows his eyes.
He doesn’t get up to greet them, opting for a simple wave instead, but he can tell something’s off.
All three of them look nervous, avoiding not just Yeonjun’s eyes, but Beomgyu’s now too.
Whether he notices and decides to ignore it, Yeonjun doesn’t know but Beomgyu takes his seat next to him and the other three sit opposite them. They barely fit onto the couch. Soobin and Kai are tall enough that they take up half the couch respectively. The smaller one, Taehyun, might as well be sitting on their laps.
“Taehyun-ah, are you okay? You can sit here, YJ and I don’t bite,” Beomgyu jokes.
Taehyun smiles but it seems forced, “Ah it’s okay Hyung,”
Beomgyu laughs, “Suit yourself then. I’m going to order something and we can start, if that’s okay with you guys?”
They nod and Beomgyu calls the waiter over.
Yeonjun takes the time to examine them.
If it had just been Soobin avoiding his gaze he would’ve written it off as normal. But the other two seem to purposefully avoid eye contact with him. They were also pretty talkative yesterday, especially Kai, and now they sit in complete silence.
Yeonjun has a feeling it has to do with him.
He grunts and shakes his head.
Why should he care? It’s not the first time people have been unpleasant around him.
He takes a look at Beomgyu who has a small frown on his face as he looks at the trio who all text furiously on their phones.
That’s why.
Yeonjun clears his throat to get their attention.
“What are your majors?” He asks once they look up.
They blink slowly and look at each other as if to make sure they’re not the only one who heard him speak.
“English Literature,” Taehyun answers first.
“Philosophy,” Kai replies.
Yeonjun looks at Soobin who clears his throat and looks just past Yeonjun’s shoulder.
“I double major in Psychology and Criminology,” he says eventually.
“Criminology? Just like YJ!” Beomgyu beams.
Soobin’s eyes dart to him quickly and then return to the space above his shoulder.
“That's nice,” Is all he says.
The group falls back into a silence that’s thankfully interrupted when the waiter returns with Beomgyu’s order who was kind enough to order tea for Yeonjun who hates the bitter taste of coffee.
“Let’s start...” Soobin suggests once Beomgyu and Yeonjun receive their drinks.
Time has never moved this slowly for Yeonjun.
Except maybe for when he visits his dad on Thursday’s.
They managed to get through the reading and divide the work accordingly but as much as Beomgyu tried to make conversation in between, the three of them kept their replies short enough that Beomgyu eventually stopped trying.
By the time they finish up, Yeonjun feels the need to punch each of them at least twice.
He stands up, more than ready to leave. Beomgyu follows suit.
“See you on Monday,” Yeonjun says as a goodbye. He wants to add something but bites his tongue, thinking about Beomgyu’s request to be nicer.
He pulls Beomgyu with him, not allowing him to say much to them - because quite frankly Yeonjun doesn’t think they deserve it - and they exit the cafe.
He manages to flash them a small smile and a wave before Yeonjun drags him away. Beomgyu stops at the counter to pay for their drinks before they leave the cafe, the smell of coffee beans now replaced with the fresh, cold air.
“What was that?” Beomgyu wonders out loud.
Yeonjun glances at him and feels a spike of anger towards the trio when he sees the troubled look on Beomgyu’s face.
“Nevermind them,” Yeonjun says when they climb into his car.
“Maybe they were just having a bad day…” He trails off in thought.
Yeonjun doubts it’s that with the way Soobin kept on looking at him but he keeps his mouth shut and continues driving.
Sometimes he wishes he had Beomgyu’s optimism.
-ˋˏ ༻❁༺ ˎˊ-
Yeonjun’s standing at the counter of the bakery near his university, the same one he saw online while looking for a job.
He taps the little bell and waits patiently, taking a look around.
It’s a pretty cute bakery.
The walls are painted a soft, baby blue and all the furniture is white. Colourful desserts sit fresh in the display cases looking sweet enough to give Yeonjun a tooth ache and framed pictures of cakes hang on the walls. It smells like sugar.
He dropped Beomgyu off at his house earlier so he could check out the bakery. Beomgyu had offered to come with but Yeonjun wanted to do it alone.
“Can I help you?”
Yeonjun turns around at the sound of the woman’s voice. She’s short with a black bob cut and wrinkles around her eyes from years spent smiling.
“Ah, sorry to disturb Ajumma. I’m here because I saw a post online about your bakery needing
assistance? I’m interested in being hired.”
Her face lights up. “Ah! Just a moment dear.”
She turns around and shouts a man’s name, Eunwoo by the sound of it, and turns back around when a tall man strides out of the door behind the counter.
He’s tall with greying hair and circular glasses. He looks vaguely familiar but Yeonjun can’t place the face so he brushes it off.
“Hello Ajeoshi,” He bows to the older man.
“And who might this be?” He asks the woman while regarding Yeonjun not unkindly.
“This is…” The woman looks at Yeonjun imploringly.
“Ah, Yeonjun.”
“This is Yeonjun-ssi,” she continues. “He wants to work for us.”
The man’s face lights up, “Ah! Are you any good with baking Yeonjun-ssi?”
Yeonjun’s heart falls. “No, Ajeoshi but I’m a really quick learner! And I’m good with numbers.”
He looks at the man and woman hopefully who smile at him.
“Please call us Jiyoo-ssi and Eunwoo-ssi, Yeonjun-ah. Would you be willing to work weekdays and weekends?” The woman who calls herself Jiyoo asks.
He nods his head vigorously. “I can work whenever you need me to.”
Eunwoo hums in thought. “We would have to see how you work to hire you for sure but if you start on Monday as a trial, we’ll let you know by the end of the week,” He peers at Yeonjun through his glasses. “How does that sound?”
“I will try my best,” he assures them with a bow.
After he gives them his details, Yeonjun heads back home to where he finds Beomgyu fast asleep with his textbook spread open on his bed.
Yeonjun sighs and removes his coat, hanging it on the door before grabbing a blanket and throwing it over Beomgyu.
His mind drifts to Soobin as he watches Beomgyu sleep and he feels angry at them for upsetting him all over again.
The anger quickly turns into guilt and he frowns down at his hands that rest in his lap.
There’s only one explanation for the sudden switch up with the other two boys.
Soobin must’ve known something about him that the others didn’t and told them. Now they don’t want to associate with Yeonjun, and Beomgyu, by association.
Normally, he wouldn’t care.
But Beomgyu likes Soobin and Yeonjun’s currently ruining the younger’s chances.
He pulls at his hair in frustration.
All those rumors because of one person.
Yeonjun sighs.
He’ll need to figure out what to do later.
He takes out his laptop and opens Pinterest.
For now, he needs to learn how to bake.
He scrolls through recipe after recipe and writes down tip after tip while he listens to the rhythmic sound of Beomgyu’s breathing.