Chapter Text
Oh, and the feeling of being alive
For the first time, in a long time
We’re a drawing of a place
A photo on the fridge
-End of August by Noah Kahan
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The first time Seungmin had ever seen Jeongin, he was nothing but a clumsy stranger that he watched from afar.
It was the first full week into their junior year at Yellow Wood, still warm in the way that September in New England always is. Half of the pack was scattered about in the grass of the main quad, some inane conversation floating around them all.
Unfortunately for them, three of their members had jobs, some of the part time variety, and even in quiet moments like this Seungmin swore he could feel their absence.
Jisung and Felix were laying on top of each other, laughing as they tried to take turns lifting each other into the air. At one point they knocked their heads together so hard that Seungmin could hear the thunk of it.
Hyunjin was sprawled out on his back like a starfish, newly dyed black hair fanning around him. He was talking about a new show he was watching, something that he wanted Seungmin to see and which sounded interesting, but Seungmin found his attention drifting away.
He had been momentarily distracted by the sight of a boy in a pair of god awful jorts with ginger, windswept hair, tripping over seemingly nothing and dropping everything he had been carrying. It was only slightly dramatic, seeing as how his water bottle began to roll down the path and Seungmin could hear his bitten off curse seated so far away.
Seungmin’s eyes had stuck to him like glue, watching him gather up all of his things and stumble off to snatch up his water bottle. He hadn’t been sitting close enough to warrant standing up and helping, though he felt a little foolish for the excuse as the boy continued his journey.
“Are you even listening to me?” Hyunjin asked, kicking his feet for attention.
“Yeah.” Seungmin lied. The clumsy guy started towards Seungmin’s dorm hall. He had been rooming in the same building for three years, and the addition of someone so new piqued his interest. “Hey, Felix. Are there any new students in our dorm?”
With a thump, Felix rolled out of Jisung’s arms. The afternoon sun caught in his hair, the pink wash he put in over the summer sticking stubborn and glowing. “There aren’t any freshers staying with us, no.”
“Anyone else?”
Felix was the unofficial RA of the building, seeing as how it was the smallest residence on campus and Admin hadn’t yet filled the role since their actual RA graduated last year. What a prestigious university, completely overlooking crucial administration.
Felix hummed, taking a long minute to think. “Oh, there is a new transfer staying at the end of our hallway. He’s in our year, I’m pretty sure. Came from out of state.”
“Eugh, out of state.” Hyunjin fake gagged, and Jisung had army crawled over to smack at his chest. “Ow! What the fuck?”
“You’re from out of state, you idiot.” Jisung reminded him.
“I’ve been here long enough, I’m practically local.”
“We’re all from out of state.” Seungmin added, barely focusing on the conversation once he had his answer.
“Felix is the most out of state. I mean, the west coast? Really?”
That made Felix scoff indignantly, knee walking over to join Jisung in jostling Hyunjin around. They became a loud, tangled mess that Seungmin ignored in favor of watching the transfer hurry away from their little patch in the quad.
Seungmin could just barely make out the transfer hopping up the front steps of their residence hall, balancing everything in his arms. There was something fascinating about him, and Seungmin had decided in that moment that they needed to become friends.
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It's a beautiful spring day in Seungmin’s sophomore year, and he’s feeling rather lonely. He’s mostly bored and in need of someone to bother, but he’s also a little lonely. After a few minutes of deliberating, he pulls out his phone and calls the one person who he wants to annoy the most.
The screen rings with the outgoing call, and Seungmin takes his time settling in with his lunch.
Soon enough, Minho’s face is greeting him on the other end, face much too close to the camera. “Are you dying?”
“I could be.”
A long pause. “Are you actively dying?”
Seungmin hums. “No, not currently.”
“Then why are you calling me.”
Always such a delight, their Minho. It was one of the things that Seungmin especially enjoyed about conversations with him to be fair, it made every interaction memorable and guaranteed to put Seungmin in a better mood.
Minho is the type of friend that will always make time for you if he can, but he’ll also make sure that every conversation is a ‘he’s not stuck in here with you, you’re stuck in here with him’ situation.
“I missed your face, I needed to see it to get through my day.” Seungmin answers as dryly as he can. Said face is still too close to the screen, Seungmin only really seeing one eyeball and half of his nose.
Minho squints his one eye. “Ok, what’s the real reason?”
Seungmin shrugs. “Everyone else is busy and I didn't want to eat alone.”
“Why aren’t you in class?”
“Are you a fucking cop, what’s with the interrogation? I’m having lunch, officer.”
“I should have lunch.” Minho muses quietly. “I'm busy too, I’m at work.” The phone finally moves as he shows off the small studio space to Seungmin.
“That’s debatable.”
Minho works part time at a dance studio in town, run by a woman who's so endeared by Minho that he could rob a bank without concealing his identity and Seungmin is positive that she'd still find him amazing. Hell, she'd probably insist on being his alibi.
After much complaining and groaning about his joints already failing him at such a young age, Minho eventually takes his lunch into the even smaller, more private practice room. He sits on the floor and sets the phone up so that Seungmin can see half of his body as they both eat in silence.
“How's Jisung?” He asks after awhile. The goal was to try annoying Minho to see how long it took him to hang up, but Seungmin prefers this. It’s a comfort to do nothing with someone.
Minho hums, shifts his legs into an impossible position. “Better.”
Winter is always hard on Jisung in ways that Seungmin might never understand, even when Jisung tries his best to explain. Sometimes it leaves traces of itself, those dark days when the snow is at it’s highest and the air is so cold it has an edge. Sometimes it weighs Jisung down well into the spring semester.
The general melancholic state of one of their pack sets everyone else on edge for the entire duration. Seungmin felt unbalanced while Jisung was practically MIA for the entire winter break and he’s anxious to fall back into their tried and true habits.
He’ll wait as long as Jisung needs, because he’s an amazing friend who respects and loves Jisung beyond all reason and measure.
“That's good to hear.” Seungmin comments, already thinking of the first thing he's going to do with Jisung once his energy has returned to him completely. There's a new documentary about the rise and fall of the dinosaurs, that seems like the sort of low effort movie night that would be perfect.
Jisung can even invite the others if he wants, Seungmin is sure Chan would be more than happy to bring snacks.
Seungmin had befriended Jisung early during freshman year and they’ve been close ever since. He had already known Felix, since they were mutually attached to Chan in different ways, and since orientation they’ve managed to collect Jisung and Hyunjin along the way. With Jisung came Minho of course, a sort of buy one get one deal.
By the time sophomore year rolled around the seven of them have become a solid unit, all entangled with each other in ways that some outside perspective might deem codependent and unhealthy.
He thinks that there’s something missing though, something that he can’t put a name to but he can feel it when the seven of them are together. Not just when Jisung can’t get out of bed which means Minho is missing too, or when Chan is away at his new full time job.
It’s an absence that lingers.
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It feels as if Seungmin’s heart is actively being ripped from his chest, watching as Chan meticulously folds each item of his clothing before setting it into his luggage. It would hurt less if Chan stuffed everything away without a care, it would feel like he’s just as hurt as Seungmin.
But even now, with his hands shaking and lip bitten raw, he's making sure each one of his shirts is packed perfectly.
“Please,” Seungmin begs, pleads. “Don’t go, not yet.”
Chan’s jaw works, hands gripping the edges of his suitcase. “Seungmin.” He warns, staring into the depths of his neatly folded clothing.
“You can stay for a little longer, please.” He tries to regulate his voice, to wipe it of all raw emotion. Seungmin tries to sound reasonable, even as he reaches forward to grab at Chan’s arm. Maybe if he seems more reasonable than he feels, then Chan will consider it. “I just want this summer.”
Chan shakes his head, eyes catching on where Seungmin’s fingers create a cuff around his wrist.
“I never ask for anything.” Seungmin can’t remember the last time he burdened Chan with something, it must have been years ago.
Finally Chan looks at him, gaze softening at the realization. Seungmin never asks because he’s the kid that Chan doesn’t have to worry ab out. He’s prided himself on it since they first became friends. Seungmin is the good one, never causing Chan trouble if he can help it.
That’s unfair to Changbin, he knows it even as he thinks it. Changbin can’t help how angry he’s been, how other he’s felt. This right now, Chan choosing to leave because the guilt digs into him so deeply and he can’t seem to fix it, isn’t Changbin’s fault in the slightest.
But Seungmin just wants one more summer before everything changes.
“I don’t know if that’s a good idea.” Chan says.
“It’s just for a few more weeks.”
Quiet settles between them for a drawn out moment, stretching thin and brittle. Finally Chan huffs a deep sigh and pushes his suitcase away. “Alright, ok. I’ll stay until the end of the month, but then I have to leave.”
Seungmin doesn’t dwell on the back half of that sentence. He squeezes Chan’s wrist, hand skipping up until it’s latching onto his shoulder. “Really?”
“Really really. I’m serious though, after summer I’m gone. I have to be.”
Seungmin doesn’t think that’s true at all, but Chan is adamant that the consequences have to exceed his actions, so he’s going whether anyone else likes it or not. He doesn’t know a life without Chan in it, and suddenly Seungmin is scared. Earlier, he was worried and anxious and mad, but he wasn’t afraid of the future.
Now it’s hitting him that after this summer, he’ll be living in a world where Chan is no longer down the street.
“Where are you going?” He asks, verging on desperate. Seungmin wants tangible proof that Chan won’t be gone forever, disappearing off into the setting sun once August is over.
“North.” Chan answers, shoulders relaxing as he finishes zipping up his suitcase. “There's this niche university that accepted me.”
“Where though, show me.”
So Chan opens up the map on Seungmin’s phone and when he hands it back, Seungmin stares at the little pin near a town in Maine. He swears to himself that he's going to memorize it, study the highways and the time it takes to get there. Look into the university and all of it's programs and scholarships.
“It's not that far.” Chan promises.
The app says it's a three hour drive. Seungmin thinks it's three hours too far.
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There’s a bedroom at Chan’s that is kept for the nights when Seungmin doesn’t want to walk back to his dorm. It’s the smallest room, and shares floor space with Chan’s office, but the bed is his. The clothes in the wardrobe are his.
It's an offering, a sign that he will always take up space in Chan's life. There is no place Chan could go where Seungmin wasn't allowed to follow.
Seungmin sometimes prefers this small space over his own dorm. The mattress is more comfortable and Chan is a stickler about laundry so the sheets are always clean. It's not a secret that it feels like home. The dorm is nothing but a waypoint, a place to keep the things that he most needs for schooling.
Seungmin knows he could move himself permanently into this room, he knows Chan would prefer it. But there's some sense of independence and safety to the idea of a space that is wholly his own. Well, not wholly. He does share it with Felix, because Felix needs a soft place to land when he’s spending time away from Chan.
But it’s still his and he enjoys knowing that he can have a place to himself.
Tonight he’s tired and it’s late and he doesn’t want to walk back to campus just to sleep, so he takes Jeongin’s hand and pulls him into bed. It’s comfortable here, warm and smelling like the same laundry detergent Chan has been using for years. There’s something borderline sacred about bringing Jeongin into a space that feels so familiar, so much like home.
He belongs here now, tucked against the wall with Seungmin slotted neatly along his side. They sleep in a tangled knot, slightly uncomfortable in their positioning but refusing to let go of each other.
This too feels like home. Like the missing little puzzle piece that Seungmin has been searching for fitting so snuggly into place.
Soon the sun is creeping through the curtains, watered down and spilling pastel across the floorboards. The clock on Chan’s desk ticks away softly, analog and old, the hour hand inching into the small hours of the morning.
Jeongin is still asleep, face soft and still. Seungmin traces a finger along his features, feather light. The sharp cheekbones, the slope of his nose and the curve of his chin. He never thought he’d be here, privileged with touching and admiring Jeongin.
As Jeongin wakes slowly, lashes fluttering against Seungmin’s fingertip, the first thing he does is hum and smile at Seungmin.
“Good morning.” He whispers, leaning closer to nose against Seungmin’s cheek.
Oh, well. Fuck.
Seungmin is pretty sure this is what love feels like.
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The forest is a riot of reds and oranges and evergreen. Seungmin sits against the trunk of a tree, the book in his lap dappled with early afternoon sunlight, eyes half lidded as he relaxes into the pleasant November breeze.
Jeongin is sprawled out on the forest floor, getting his jeans dirty, head pillowed on Hyunjin’s thigh. It’s a quiet moment, one that Seungmin feels is well deserved after the whirlwind of the last week.
Like this, maybe Jeongin can forget the things weighing on him. Maybe they can be content for just a few hours.
“What are you drawing?” Jeongin asks, voice heavy and eyes closed. He had been asleep only a few minutes ago, taking a quick nap in a beam of sunlight.
Hyunjin hums, balancing his sketchpad on the knee unoccupied by Jeongin’s big head. “Wouldn’t you like to know.”
“That is why I asked.”
Seungmin rolls his eyes and gestures towards a little patch of sweet alyssum blooming purple and white. “He’s drawing the flowers over there.”
“How do you know that?” Jeongin tilts his head to better look at Seungmin. He's unfairly adorable like that, eyes big and blinking, hair slightly mussed on one side.
“Because he always draws flowers.” There are so many sketchbooks and canvases filled with various flowers scattered around the house, and Seungmin is sure there are even more tucked away in Hyunjin’s room. His two favorite things are flowers and oil paints.
Correction, his two favorite things are flowers and Changbin, but oil paints come in a close third to flowers.
Hyunjin sniffs, haughty and putting on a show. “I’ll have you know I’m sketching a little family of birds.”
“Ooh, trying something new for a change.” Seungmin teases, making Jeongin muffle a laugh.
“Go fuck yourself.” Hyunjin answers deadpan, and it makes Seungmin smile.
Jeongin opens his mouth to say something, but at that moment a beautifully shaped oak leaf, yellow and bright, lands directly in his mouth. It’s nothing short of a miracle, Seungmin thinks, and he doesn’t usually believe in that sort of thing. But the timing was perfect and the path that it drifted was flawless.
It all leads to the truly perfect second of Jeongin breathing in at the exact moment it makes contact with his open mouth, the leaf getting sucked in like a vacuum and Jeongin proceeding to almost choke on it.
Seungmin can’t help but laugh, the force of it almost tips him over. Hyunjin makes a startled noise and before either of them can act Seungmin is lunging forward, one hand cupping Jeongin’s chin to hold him still while he sticks his fingers into Jeongin’s open mouth to grab at the offending leaf.
As funny as it is, he doesn’t want Jeongin choking for real. That would just be upsetting for everyone involved.
It’s wet when Seungmin pulls it free, both Hyunjin and Jeongin gagging at the sight of it.
“The forest is trying to kill me.” It’s the first thing out of Jeongin’s mouth once his coughing has subsided, and the laughter comes back with a vengeance.
Seunmin wipes at the spit coating Jeongin’s chin with the heel of his hand none too gently, calling him ridiculous and annoying. Of course something like that would happen to Jeongin of all people, his luck is just that complicated.
Seungmin purposefully ignores the flush to Jeongin’s cheeks and the shine of his lips.
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The first time Seungmin had ever met Jeongin, in a very real and proper way beyond Felix introducing them all on move in day, Seungmin was stealing books from the library.
He didn’t particularly want to steal the books, but it was the only way he could bring them back to the comfort of his dorm room.
The librarian, a wonderful woman named Heather who was in her early forties and loved to talk to Seungmin, had regretfully informed him that he couldn’t borrow any more books until he had returned the others. The problem was that Seungmin wasn’t done reading those books.
“They were stolen.” He tells her, as serious as ever.
“Someone stole your books?” Heather questions, genuinely concerned.
“My friend took them.”
“Then you should definitely get them back, sweetie.” She informs him gently but firmly.
Seungmin tries not to let the disappointment show on his face that this tactic clearly isn't working. Unfortunately she's been at the receiving end of too many of his schemes.
“What are you doing with all these folk stories and werewolf books anyway? I thought you were gettin’ to be a lawyer.”
“I am,” Seungmin reassures, leaning into the counter. “But I’m doing some personal research.”
Personal research that Chan didn’t know about and Felix just raised his eyebrows at. Research in the form of textbooks and notebooks stuffed under his bed away from prying eyes. Research that included a lot of esoteric books that held little to no basis in reality, storybooks and fairytales and the journaling of men declared mad.
More times than he can count, Seungmin questioned what it was that he was even searching for.
Heather hums, turning back to her computer to aimlessly move her mouse around.
Heather was a born and raised Mainard. Her and her sister were born on one of the little islands off Maine’s coast, but her parents moved them all to the mainland when she was still little. Apparently her Grandmother was from Nova Scotia, which she blamed for the accent that sometimes slipped out in her vowels.
Seungmin knew all of this because he was an avid guest at the library and would happily listen whenever the faculty wanted to talk. It paid handsomely to be a polite little guy who adults looked at fondly. Except for in this moment where he can’t even check out extra books, no matter how much Heather likes him.
“Are you researchin’ how to turn into one of those creatures that goes bump in the night or something?”
“Or something.” He answers as vaguely as he can get away with.
“Oh hey, did you ever look into transferring to Harvard?” She abandons the computer to lean closer, earnest as she asks. “I really think it’d be good for you, kiddo. Studying law here? Seems a bit backwoods to me.”
Seungmin smiles big. “This is a very prestigious school, Heather.” They both laugh at his tone. “Besides, I have family here.”
She sucks her teeth. “I’m sure they’d understand if you wanted to go somewhere else.”
He taps his fingers against the wood of her desk. “Maybe, but I’m not ready for that yet. It almost broke me the first time I was away from them, I don’t want to go through that again.”
“You are so intense.” She laughs, rolling her eyes fondly. “Go down to Boston, expand your life experiences. It’ll be good for you.” Heather nods as she imparts this wisdom, reaching for the stack of books by Seungmin’s arm.
He places a hand at the top of the stack. He doesn’t want to think about moving away, not yet. Not while he’s still looking for the missing piece to their pack.
“Are you sure I can’t check these out?” He knows the answer but he has to ask one more time. Just in case.
“Nuh-uh, not a one. You’re full up on books, mister. Return all of the ones you’ve lost, and then we’ll talk.”
“Fine, ok. I hear you.” It's easier to agree than to continue arguing. “At least let me put these back for you.”
Heather narrows her eyes at him, and Seungmin doesn’t flinch. He’s been doing this for too many years to feel even a sliver of fear. “Alright, you go do that.”
“I will.”
There is the possibility that Seungmin should feel more guilty than he does taking a detour away from the large ornate bookshelves once he’s out of Heather’s eye line, but unfortunately he doesn’t. He’s sure that she’ll eventually forgive him, she always does.
On his way out, he knocks into Jeongin swinging the door wide. Even like this, cursing about the pain in his foot and grimacing deeply, he’s almost unfairly beautiful. Hair curling and fading into something strawberry blonde, thin sweater artfully tucked into his pants and one sleeve pushed up around his elbow.
It shows off the flex of his arm as he holds the strap of his book bag.
Seungmin didn’t have the luxury of time on his side, every second ticking down until Heather noticed that he hadn’t come back to say goodbye to her as he usually does. Which means he’ll have to save the staring for a later date. He snatches the book up before Jeongin can even think of helping, glasses slipping at the movement, eyes glancing behind his own shoulder.
After getting his foot crushed by a comically large textbook and learning that Seungmin is stealing from the library, Jeongin chooses to block the door. Situating himself between Seungmin and the potential of getting caught.
Well, that settles it for Seungmin. They were going to be best friends.
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Seungmin had never liked kissing. He tried it once while he was still in highschool. Granted, he was at some party that he never would have gone to under normal circumstances, and he was one of the weird kids who lived up in the woods on a commune, so he didn’t really have a big pool of boys to choose from.
The only reason he was even at the party was because of Changbin.
He got invited to a lot of parties, by people that Seungmin isn’t even sure Changbin knew. But people loved him, and Changbin loved people. There’s always been something so affable about him, even when they were young and he was at his angriest. The thing about Changbin is that unless you knew him, you wouldn’t be able to tell.
They were at a party where Changbin was playing as the type of teenager he wanted to be; popular and loud, normal, and Seungmin was along for the ride because he’d follow Changbin almost anywhere.
“Hey,” some guy in Changbin’s year had greeted, sidling up to Seungmin while he was just trying to get himself another Capri Sun. It was the only non-alcoholic drink offered and he’d already had three. It wasn’t even a good flavor, but he didn’t know what else to do with himself.
“Hi?”
“You’re Chris’ younger brother, right?”
Just the mention of Chan had Seungmin’s heart seizing. What was it that Changbin had told him? Stop borrowing grief from the future, it’s incredibly stupid. But Seungmin couldn’t help but take from the grief that he’ll continue to experience until he can see Chan again. Until the three of them can be together again.
“Uh, yeah.”
Somehow that very awkward introduction had lead to a longer conversation. The guy’s name was Ethan and he seemed pretty cool, all things considered. Dyed hair, a nose ring, niche band t-shirt. He was the type of guy to crack open a bear bottle using the edge of the counter top.
Cool in a slightly trying too hard type of way. Decidedly not Seungmin’s type.
“So, what’s your plan after graduation?” Ethan asked, flipping the bottle cap like a coin.
Seungmin was years away from graduation. Chan had already graduated and Changbin was going into his senior year, and Seungmin was just a sophomore.
“Lawyer, probably.”
Ethan whistled, impressed. “Seriously? Why?”
“My parents were killed in a really gruesome way and the guy got off because of a really shitty lawyer, so I want to avenge them.”
“Oh holy shit, dude I am so sorry-”
“Nah, I’m fucking with you.” Seungmin sucks at his juice pouch. “Changbin says I have a talent for being able to naturally ragebait people and use it to my advantage. Says I should use it as a force of good instead of villainous intent.”
Ethan had blinked hard at that, looking a little lost for words before he took a very long pull from his beer. “Fair enough.”
Eventually their conversation had faded off into standing and staring at each other, Seungmin picking at the straw of his fourth Capri Sun and Ethan nodding along to the music.
Somehow they had decided that the only logical conclusion to this awkward conversation was to kiss.
It must be said that Ethan truly wasn’t a terrible guy. He was just over eager and a little drunk and Seungmin had decided early on in the entire interaction that kissing him would be weird. So when it happened, he wasn’t surprised to learn that it was weird and disappointing and wet.
At least Seungmin now has undeniable proof that kissing is fucking bad and he has no desire to ever do it again.
⋅•⋅⊰∙∘☽✧☾∘∙⊱⋅•⋅
Kissing Jeongin is fucking perfect.
He never wants to stop.
Unfortunately they have to, which is aggravating and disappointing and Seungmin is cursing every otherworldly power in the universe that’s listening.
“Shouldn’t you be working on your mock trial thing?” Jeongin asks, breathy and smiling, leaning back in to kiss at Seungmin’s chin and neck.
He should, he absolutely should be doing something much more productive than this. But there’s something so addictive about the way Jeongin tastes.
“Ten more minutes.” Seungmin sets a timer on his phone.
Jeongin laughs.
There are very few things that rank higher on Seungmin’s list of things he adores about Jeongin than kissing him, and his laugh is one of them. It’s infectious and loud, and it almost without fail makes Seungmin smile. Jeongin is the sort of person that should always be happy, dimples permanently on display for the world to see.
Of course Seungmin has to plant a kiss to each dimple as they appear, showing them the appropriate amount of appreciation.
“I’m mad at myself.” Seungmin huffs, leaning away to properly squint at Jeongin’s face. Mostly his lips, but he also glances at some other parts of his face too, like his eyes and cheeks and the bridge of his nose. But mostly his lips. To be fair, Jeongin has a very beautiful mouth.
He also has very beautiful hands which are currently sneaking their way underneath Seungmin’s shirt, but he’s much more focused on his mouth right now.
Jeongin laughs again, quieter but no less amused. “What, why?”
“Because I wasted so much time not kissing you. Imagine how much sooner we could have been kissing!”
“Hmm.” Jeongin hums in thought, mouth screwing up and eyebrows furrowing. How could he switch so smoothly between being so hot that it made Seungmin’s insides shiver, and so adorable that it gave Seungmin a severe case of cuteness aggression. “Halloween, probably.”
Seungmin has to agree. He had been intrigued by Jeongin since he first saw him, but it wasn’t until Halloween night that he had truly put any weight behind the chance of kissing Jeongin. “True. It would’ve been so easy too.”
“Really?”
“Innie, you literally had me in your arms. That was prime time for a kiss.”
“Then why didn’t you?”
Halloween night feels like a tangle of memories shrouded in teeth and blood and worry. All night Jeongin had been on edge, flinching at the smallest sounds and fidgeting with anything at his fingertips. The worst part is that Seungmin doesn’t think he even noticed.
Picking at the label of his beer bottle, tapping the glass against the bottom row of his teeth, digging his nail into the hem of his shirt. At one point he even had a piece of Seungmin’s costume between his fingers, rubbing at the fabric and focusing on a completely different conversation.
“It didn’t really feel like the right moment.” Seungmin explains, moving his hands to hold the sides of Jeongin’s face. “You hadn’t said anything at that point but I could just feel that something was off about you.”
“Makes sense. I woke up with a migraine and I just,” He says, trailing off as he tries to find his words. “In hindsight I know the feeling, but at the time I couldn’t even explain it to myself. I felt like I didn’t fit inside of my body.”
“I don’t think even a kiss could have saved that night.”
If anything, a kiss would have probably made everything hurt more. Watching Jeongin run from the party and following. Everything that unfolded in the woods after. Jeongin pulling away because he needed to settle some things inside of himself.
“Probably not, but I should have kissed you anyway.” Jeongin admits, honest and vulnerable and Seungmin presses a kiss to the corner of his mouth because he can’t help himself. “I should have kissed you after, when you took care of me and promised to lie about a dead body for me. Or later, in the tent when we were camping. I should have kissed you a dozen times in the library while we were studying.”
“You should have kissed me in the tent, what the fuck was that.”
“We were interrupted!” Jeongin exclaims, squeezing Seungmin around his middle.
“That just sounds like an excuse to me-”
He’s swiftly shut up by Jeongin reattaching their mouths.
The timer on his phone chimes. Seungmin gives himself another five minutes.
Once the alarm has rung for the third time, Seungmin has to admit that he has more important things to do than kiss his boyfriend all day. Namely the mock trial that he should have spent the afternoon preparing for but was instead distracted by Jeongin’s mouth.
He kneels at the edge of the bed as Jeongin helps him back into his sweater, delighting in the simple act of dressing Seumgmin. As his head pops free of the collar, Seungmin makes sure to level Jeongin with a sharp look. “Don’t let all of this go to your head,” he says, trying to keep a straight face. “You still annoy the hell out of me.”
Jeongin’s smile softens, and Seungmin can feel the expression pierce straight through his chest. It leaves him a little winded. “You’re a very bad liar.” He says, patting down Seungmin’s hair.
Ok, well that's just fucking rude. Seungmin is an amazing liar. “I take offense to that.”
“I know.”
⋅•⋅⊰∙∘☽✧☾∘∙⊱⋅•⋅
He's still in his pajamas as Felix drags him into the upstairs bathroom to do their makeup. Half of Felix's face is done, smokey eye with red glitter, and now it's Seungmin’s turn.
“You're going to look magical.” Felix says, voice bottoming out into something gravelly and excited.
It’s Seungmin’s own fault for choosing to be a mermaid for Halloween, since that meant he needed to look glimmering and wet and magical. Felix had even threatened to go as far as dying Seungmin’s hair a cherry red to truly sell the Little Mermaid look if they had the time, but unfortunately for Seungmin all they could fit into the afternoon was makeup.
The bathroom has always been small for such a big house, and it feels even smaller with Felix crammed between his legs to smudge a brush across his cheeks and eyelids.
“Oh, wait.” Felix stops, pulling away to assess his handiwork. “You need scales. I need fishnets, hold on.” Without much more of an explanation, he’s leaving the bathroom and rushing down the hall to Hyunjin’s room.
Seungmin stands up the moment Felix is gone, stretching his legs and pacing in the tiny space like a cooped up lion in a zoo enclosure. He’s contemplating the safety of doing some stretches in the bathtub when Changbin swings into the doorway.
“Wow, that’s a lot of glitter for Pinocchio.”
Seungmin finally looks at himself in the mirror. His eyelids are shimmering and pearlescent, and there’s a dusting of blue along the edges of his face. Even his lips have a tint to them that reminds Seungmin of drowned victims. Indigo-green and smudged. “I changed my mind.” It was an instinctual decision, something he doesn’t have much of an explanation for. “The Little Mermaid is much more exciting.”
Changbin hums, bracing both hands on the door frame as he leans all of his weight into the room. “Disney or Hans?”
“Hans Christian Anderson.” Seungmin confirms, trying not to judge so harshly since in his mind there was only ever one correct choice.
“Dark.”
“Thank you.”
“Changbin!” Felix greets, bright and happy. He ducks under Changbin’s arm, turning at the last minute and digging his fingers into the meat of Changbin’s bicep as he faces him. “Stay, let me glitter you. You can’t be a princess without glitter.”
Changbin lingers for a moment before shrugging. “Yeah alright, make me pretty.”
The already minuscule bathroom becomes overcrowded with one more body.
One of the worst things about being the second most paper thin member of the pack is that it is incredibly easy to capture Seungmin when the consequences of his own actions have finally caught up to him.
The actions of course being the unforgivable crime of being purposefully annoying while the others are setting up last minute decorations for the party. In his defense he was getting bored helping Jisung sort the snacks into the themed baskets that Hyunjin had set out.
The consequence, naturally, comes in the form of Chan finally having enough and taking off towards him. Vaulting the dining room table with ease to chase Seungmin down. He knows he’s lost before he’s even made it into the foyer, because no one is faster than Chan.
“If I let you go, are you going to sit still?” Chan asks, arms wrapped like a vice around Seungmin.
“Yeah, of course.” Seungmin lies.
Unfortunately Chan has known him too long, which means he doesn’t believe Seungmin in the slightest.
Somehow that leads to him getting tied up in a fishing net that belonged to one of Hyunjin’s many abandoned art projects, along with Minho scooping him up and placing him into the clawfoot tub that was going to be used as a makeshift cooler for drinks. Thankfully it’s empty of both ice and drinks, or else Seungmin’s costume would have become a piece of chilled sushi.
He tried to fight back, he really did. Seungmin could stand a chance if it was only Jisung lashing his legs together seeing as how all he really owns are vanity muscles, but once Chan and Minho got involved he was practically dead in the water.
Seungmin did snap his teeth at them as he was hauled away, but Minho is the wrong person to pull that move on seeing as he’ll happily snap his own right back in Seungmin’s face every time.
The party kicks off and for the first half an hour Seungmin is in hell. Confined to one space and set up in the living room as if he’s a real mermaid on display. Thankfully Hyunjin and Changbin stop by to feed him and Chan even keeps him company for a bit as an apology, before he’s slinking off to sulk in the kitchen once Felix enters the room.
He’s genuinely contemplating telling the guys that he’s no longer having fun and he wants to be cut loose from the stupid net binding his legs together after the novelty wears off. Jisung tied the knot so tightly that it’s almost impossible to pick at.
They fuck with each other often, it’s almost like a sixth love language. But there’s always a boundary line that they try their best to respect, and Seungmin suspects this little prank is beginning to teeter dangerously close.
All he really has to do is tell any one of them that he’s tired of this and he wants to be set free, and they’ll grab the nearest pair of scissors even as they give him shit about it. If he’s really that desperate he just has to use the safe word that Chan made them all memorize and he’ll be hauled out of the tub before he can close his mouth.
Seungmin is getting restless, twitchy and squirmy and he wants out.
Jeongin appears like some sort of superhero or swashbuckling pirate right as Seungmin starts to reach his limit, blinking down at Seungmin with a look of amusement and confusion. He’s so hot that it should be illegal. Black riding boots, billowing shirt, and so much jewelry that he glints in the low light of the party.
There’s no way to prove it beyond Seungmin having a gut feeling, but this must have been why he had the sudden urge to change his own costume at the last minute. Something in the wind wanted them to match.
Their harmless bickering leads to Jeongin pretending to step away, mischief in his eyes, and Seungmin can’t help but whine in response. It’s involuntary, and he even reaches out to touch Jeongin’s wrist.
Jeongin immediately stops, sways forward.
The steady beat of his pulse under Seungmin’s fingers is damn near intoxicating.
Soon enough he’s somehow found himself in Jeongin’s arms, and that’s the last place he thought he’d ever be tonight. The simple fact that Jeongin picked him up with ease makes Seungmin dizzy and breathless, and he swallows down the urge to grope at Jeongin’s shoulders the entire time he’s being carried into the kitchen.
This close he could kiss Jeongin if he really wanted to, it would be easy enough to close the distance. But Jeongin has been on edge since he first stepped into the living room, Seungmin can feel it. The tension in his shoulders and in his scent, anxiety and stress rolling off of him in waves.
Maybe it was worth getting chased down and tied up by his friends, if only so that it could lead to this moment. Jeongin crouching down, hands on Seungmin’s bare legs, concentrating as he cuts Seungmin loose of his mermaid bonds.
⋅•⋅⊰∙∘☽✧☾∘∙⊱⋅•⋅
The air is thick with tension, with anger and shock, and Seungmin is trying not to drown in it.
Everything that could go wrong had gone wrong tonight. If only Seungmin had the ability to rewind the clock he would go back in time to put a stop to it all before it had begun.
There’s blood soaked into the knees of his pants and Changbin is breathing heavily, lungs constricting with guilt and panic and Seungmin doesn’t know how to help. He does what he can, pressing gauze to the wound in a futile effort to staunch the bleeding. It’s already starting to heal, the skin slowly knitting itself back together and the blood slowing.
Changbin is crying, silent tears that go unnoticed by the rest of the room. But Seungmin sees them, and it digs at his heart.
He’s shaking and trying not to cry himself, because crying would not be productive in this moment.
There’s a growl from the other side of the room, and Seungmin curls himself over Changbin’s hunched form. It’s instinctual though there’s no one here that’s a threat, but Changbin is hurt and Seungmin can’t help but act as a very ineffective shield. “You’re going to be ok.” He promises, whispering the words into Changbin’s shirt sleeve.
“What would possess you to do this?” Chan’s aunt asks, harsh and accusatory. It’s not directed at either of them, but Seungmin’s shoulders climb in defense all the same.
She’s the leader of their commune. Alpha, Seungmin thinks to himself. It's an antiquated word that's not used anymore, but that doesn’t make it any less true. A woman that’s in charge, that’s respected and who Seungmin has looked up to his entire life. A kind but firm woman who taught Chan how to be a wolf.
“He asked for it!” Chan argues, desperate and seething.
She scoffs, angry at the scene they’ve created on the floor of Changbin’s bedroom. The rug is unsalvageable, Seungmin knows it. So are his pants and both of their shirts. Maybe even Chan’s socks. Everything is a little bit soggy with blood.
“That doesn’t mean you can bite him without permission.”
“He gave me permission-”
“From me.” She stresses. “You need permission from the adults in charge so that things like this won’t happen. There are systems and rules in place when it comes to giving someone a bite, for fuck’s sake. You know this!”
Chan growls in frustration and panic, Seungmin can hear it lacing the edges. “I was just-”
“You almost ripped his arm off, Christopher. You could have fucking killed him.”
Changbin makes a choked sound, like a whine cut off before it could ever begin. “I’m sorry, Minnie.” He says quietly, voice thick and wobbling. “I’m sorry, tell Channie I’m sorry. I didn’t mean for him to get into so much trouble, I wasn’t thinking.”
“You are the eldest!” She continues, and Seungmin squeezes his eyes shut. “They’re your responsibility.”
Something like a sob rips free from Chan’s throat, still frustrated but now limned in guilt. By the end of that weekend, Seungmin finds Chan in his room, packing.
⋅•⋅⊰∙∘☽✧☾∘∙⊱⋅•⋅
Seungmin cheats at rock paper scissors, guaranteeing that he’ll share a tent with Jeongin during their little camping trip.
Changbin absolutely catches him, but thankfully doesn’t say anything. Just squints at Seungmin and slightly shakes his head in apparent disapproval. It does nothing to make Seungmin feel bad, seeing as how he got exactly what he wanted out of this and there’s nothing that could ruin this for him.
Sure he’s also sharing a tent with Minho and Jisung, but they’re freaks who can’t keep their hands or mouths off of each other and have decided to take that to the woods for now. Which means it’s just him and Jeongin alone in the tent, with nothing but a small lamp as a light source.
When it’s Jeongin’s turn to change and he tells Seungmin not to peek, Seungmin absolutely peeks. Sue him. He’s alone in the woods with a beautiful boy in the near darkness. It’d be weird if he didn’t peek.
The lamp provides a warm glow, throwing shadows around the tent. Jeongin strips out of his jeans and even wrestles with his sweater, immediately pulling on something much warmer and more comfortable. It’s over so quickly that Seungmin barely catches any bare skin, just the suggestion of it. The curve of his thigh as it’s hidden by sweat pants, the swell of his arms as he’s changing into a long sleeve shirt.
It’s enough to fuel Seungmin’s imagination for the rest of the year.
Soon he’s kicking Seungmin out of his sleeping bag and dumping a pile of fabric into his lap. “Go on,” Jeongin urges, pressing his finger into Seungmin’s knee. “Put them on since you’re so cold.”
Unfolding what was handed over, Seungmin’s face begins to flush at the sight of Jeongin’s hoodie. It’s simple and pink and Seungmin tells himself that it does not mean anything. It’s just a hoodie and a blanket, given so that Seungmin wouldn’t freeze his ass off.
His brain glitches for a fraction of a second though, running wild with the implications of wearing something that belongs to Jeongin. In a roundabout way it would mean Seungmin belongs to-
No, nope. That’s too far.
As quickly as he can manage, he tugs the hoodie on. Jeongin blinks at him for a prolonged moment before he’s swiftly finishing his task of combining their sleeping bags.
It was a nice sentiment, really, to make one big sleeping bag so that they could share warmth, but the outcome was terrible. Because now they lay face to face, far too close and packed like sardines. Seungmin can feel the warmth of Jeongin’s breath and it’s making him feel dizzy. All he can smell is Jeongin’s laundry detergent and the scent of a crisp winter morning. The snap of something sharp and cold and refreshing.
Seungmin wants to burrow closer, until his face is pressed into the first bit of Jeongin’s skin he can reach and he can properly inhale. Their noses brush, and Jeongin shivers all over.
“Sorry,” he whispers, though he doesn’t mean it one bit.
With a soft breath shared between them, Jeongin is shifting closer.
“Is this ok?” Jeongin asks, just as quietly. It’s more than ok, it’s fucking incredible.
Seungmin wastes no time nodding, words failing him as anticipation fills him to bursting. If it were physically possible he’d be vibrating out of his skin, the wolf twined into his DNA eager and wanting. Their mouths hover so close, a hairsbreadth from making contact. Jeongin’s thumb rubs along the curve of Seungmin’s rib, soothing the way his breath hitches.
The moment is harshly blown away like smoke on the breeze as the tent opens suddenly, and Seungmin has to screw his eyes closed so that he doesn’t do something drastic. Like physically tossing Jisung out of the tent and into the cold November night.
⋅•⋅⊰∙∘☽✧☾∘∙⊱⋅•⋅
It’s early winter of his sophomore year and there’s the weight of unsaid words seeping into the quiet of the kitchen. Seungmin is becoming a professional at navigating moments like this.
This is not the first time he’s helping clean up a mess that he didn’t cause, and he doubts it’ll be the last time. Seungmin suffers from the incurable disease of being an incredibly reliable person when things go wrong.
He’s not a chef, not like Minho or Chan, but Chan is at work and Minho is busy taking care of their current problem. Normally he’s not trusted enough to cook, but Seungmin knows enough to get by. Enough to make his friend something to eat while the house is quiet and Hyunjin is spiraling at the kitchen table.
It’s smaller than the giant table that Chan commissioned earlier this year to fit perfectly into the dining room, tucked off into a corner of the kitchen. It’s the perfect place for introspective moments like this. Hyunjin sits with his back hunching and his face in his hands, and an untouched mug of tea growing cold at his elbow.
Seungmin slides a plate of food in front of him. “You have to eat something.” He says.
If there’s one thing he’s learned from the people in his life that can’t help but take care of others, it’s that a snack and some water can help with almost anything. Minho says that it’s near impossible to catastrophize when you’re too busy putting food into your belly and Chan swears by an ice cold glass of water while dissociating.
He’s dumping ice into a glass when Hyunjin speaks up, sounding hollow and wrung out.
“Chan can’t know about this.” Hyunjin pokes at the poorly seasoned scrambled eggs. “No one can. I mean it, Minnie.”
“I know.” Seungmin sighs. The glass clinks against the tabletop, and then he’s reaching out to take Hyunjin’s hand, turning it into the weak evening light to get a better look at the blood under his fingernails. “Eat, and then get into the shower.”
This is something they can handle, he’s sure of it.
Hyunjin whines, low and broken. “I can’t, I’m too nauseous. I feel like I’m going to throw up.”
“There’s nothing to throw up, because you haven’t eaten all day.”
“Can you be nicer to me?” There he is, an edge to his voice, some life returning to his tone. “Oh my god, I’m fragile right now.”
Seungmin squeezes his hand, getting Hyunjin’s full attention. The whining and the pouting stop immediately at the look on Seungmin’s face. “No one will know about this, I promise.”
⋅•⋅⊰∙∘☽✧☾∘∙⊱⋅•⋅
Seungmin feels the silence of the house settle over the both of them as Jeongin falls asleep easily. Bunny has curled up in the crook of Jeongin’s arm, making herself even smaller, nose tucked under her paw and tiny body cradled in Jeongin’s elbow.
They’re both breathing softly, and Seungmin can’t stop himself from watching the rise of fall of Jeongin’s chest so intently.
Just two hours ago Seungmin was living in a reality where Jeongin was angry at him, where everything felt a little tipped on it’s side. Jeongin had wanted space, had practically begged for it with a seething tone, and Seungmin obliged.
The month had rolled by, slow and viscous, and Seungmin could barely focus on his school work. The others had asked where Jeongin had disappeared to and Seungmin had told the truth, there wasn’t any point in lying. He had omitted the sharper edges of the conversation though, filing it all down until it no longer hurt to get the words out.
Minho hadn’t fully believed him, Seungmin could tell by the way he raised his brows from behind Jisung’s shoulder, but he didn’t mention it at all which Seungmin was grateful for.
It had felt odd, for the first few days, to not have Jeongin attached to his side. In a short amount of time they had become a two headed creature of sorts, always orbiting each other. Suddenly there was an empty space where Jeongin’s smile had once occupied and Seungmin felt as if he was missing a vital organ.
Now they’re laying side by side on a couch that’s miraculously wide enough to fit them both, touching from shoulder to hip to ankle, and Seungmin can’t stop watching him.
Seungmin has always endeavored to be a creature that works on logic and critical understanding, but unfortunately he has pesky emotions that overwhelm him to a frightening degree. Seungmin has never been someone who yearns. Not like this.
It had been almost frighteningly easy to forgive Jeongin. One look from him, curled up on the couch in Hyunjin’s clothes, looking damp and sad, and Seungmin had already forgiven him before any words had come out of his mouth.
Seungmin’s heart is too big for his body sometimes, though he tries his best to swallow it down and away from prying eyes. All it took was Jeongin frowning and Seungmin decided that there was no longer any need to be upset. Not when both of their hearts had been breaking all month.
Carefully, as to not wake him, Seungmin reaches out to gently brush his finger along the curve of Jeongin’s cheek, down the bridge of his nose. Jeongin is so annoying, and Seungmin never wants to be apart from him again.
⋅•⋅⊰∙∘☽✧☾∘∙⊱⋅•⋅
The first week of October brings with it the first chilly days of Autumn, finally giving Seungmin an excuse to pull out his favorite cardigans. It also presented Seungmin with his first project of the semester, assigned to him in the only class he shares with Jeongin.
He isn’t quite sure how Civil Law and Childhood Education overlap in any meaningful way, but he’s stopped questioning how Yellow Wood does anything. The university claims to pride itself on creative innovation and a diverse learning experience, which is just flowery jargon to pad the brochures.
Regardless of the logic, Jeongin slides into the empty chair next to Seungmin and smiles just enough to reveal dimples.
He's the sort of breathtaking that belongs in folklore, the kind of story about a handsome trickster spirit with his fox like features and newly dyed ginger hair. Poised to riddle away Seungmin’s name until it belongs under Jeongin’s tongue.
“Howdy, partner.” Jeongin says, and Seungmin can tell he immediately regrets it. He scrunches his nose up and breathes out harshly, and Seungmin finds it stupidly endearing.
In his embarrassment, Jeongin quickly turns to reach into his bag and manages to plant his hand at the corner of where his notebook hangs over the edge of the desk, causing it and his pen to flip into the air. “Fuck,” he hisses, trying to catch the pen and only managing to backhand it directly into Seungmin’s face.
There’s a beat of silence as the space above Seungmin’s eyebrow twinges sharply and Jeongin stares at him in dawning horror. It all happened so quickly that it takes Seungmin a moment to process what, exactly, just fucking happened to him.
“I am so sorry.” Jeongin immediately apologizes, reaching towards Seungmin to do- something. Seungmin never learns what he intended to do because Jeongin’s hand slides across the desktop and knocks everything in front of Seungmin to the ground. “Oh, my fucking-” He stops himself, hand slapping to his mouth.
Seungmin doesn’t understand how one person can be so god damn clumsy. It’s some sort of fucked up superpower, he’s sure of it.
Blinking, he stares at the empty space where his own belongings were just sitting. “It’s almost impressive how you managed to do all of that in the span of three minutes.”
“I’m really so sorry,” Jeongin bursts into action, ducking under the table to grab Seungmin’s things. It’s only once he’s back in his seat, spreading out the notebooks and pencil case that had fallen, that Seungmin thinks to worry about Jeongin knocking his head against the desk.
It seems like something unlucky enough to happen to him.
“You just make me nervous.” Jeongin admits, cheeks flushing.
God, he really is embarrassed, isn’t he?
Seungmin shakes his head, taking over the task of reorganizing everything he had set out for this class. “No need to be nervous, it’s fine. Really, there’s no harm done.”
Jeongin makes a little noise and ducks his head. “Right, yeah.” He almost sounds disappointed.
Class continues on, and Jeongin’s little stunt is swiftly forgotten by those that were close enough to witness it. Even Seungmin manages to forget as the sting from the pen fades to nothing.
Soon enough their professor is explaining what, exactly, she’s expecting from the project, and Jeongin won’t stop fidgeting. Long fingers taping at their shared desk, rolling his pen to and fro while Seungmin tries to concentrate.
“Will you quit that?” Seungmin hisses under his breath.
The pen stills, rolls once more with a damning skip before Jeongin is moving his hand away. The ring on his pointer finger clicks against the tabletop as he does, pulling Seungmin’s focus.
“Sorry.” Another apology, another click of his ring. “Maybe I just wanted your attention.”
Seungmin stares at him blankly, long enough that Jeongin begins to fidget again. “You were being annoying so I’d pay attention to you?”
“It worked, didn't it?” The dimples reappear as he twists a smile Seungmin’s way, head tilted and eyes crinkling at the corners. It makes something swoop in Seungmin’s chest, a feeling that he doesn’t want to put a name to right now. A fluttering, nauseous swooping.
“No, it didn’t,” he says firmly, taking the pen from under Jeongin’s hand and placing it in his own pencil case. They can’t afford any more distractions if they want to understand the core of this project, and Jeongin is very distracting.
Jeongin makes another noise, this one weightier and more affronted. “Hey, I was using that.”
“Well, you aren’t anymore. Focus on the class.” Seungmin says, making sure to add on a please as an after thought.
⋅•⋅⊰∙∘☽✧☾∘∙⊱⋅•⋅
Winter break is drawing closer, and Seungmin vows to cram in as much studying as he can before he’s forced off of campus grounds. Which is why he’s practically made himself at home in the library as of late, tucked away into a quiet corner of the second floor.
He’s been distracted recently, first with everything surrounding Halloween and then the unfiltered joy that’s followed after him ever since Jeongin had kissed him in the forest. What’s been amazing for his romantic life has been absolutely devastating for his academic life and he’s hellbent on fixing that.
Soon enough the object of his affection and the biggest culprit in distracting Seungmin shows up, joining in his little study session late into the afternoon.
Jeongin immediately smiles when he rounds the corner and spots Seungmin, dimple popping, and it makes Seungmin flush hot all over. He looks amazing as always, book bag slung over his shoulder and the knot of his tie partially undone and hanging around his neck like a noose.
“Hi,” Jeongin whispers once he gets close, leaning in to press a kiss to Seungmin’s temple.
There is a fluidity to almost everything he does, which is comically at odds with his incredibly clumsy nature. Jeongin is like a walking contradiction; simultaneously some suave creature who has an effortless gait, and the biggest fucking loser that Seungmin has ever had the pleasure of knowing.
It’s perfectly encapsulated in the way he slings his book bag onto the table with no issues, smirking at Seungmin, followed immediately by the way he manages to somehow knock his knee into the leg of the table and stumble directly into his seat, trapping a pained groan behind his teeth on his way down.
Seungmin watches this all transpire quietly with a curling smile. He’s such a ridiculous boy and Seungmin is in love.
He knows with a surety that focusing is going to be near impossible now, but he doesn’t begrudge Jeongin for joining and disrupting the atmosphere. Who knows, maybe they’ll actually get something done while working in tandem. The chances are slim but never impossible.
Seungmin watches as Jeongin pulls supplies from his bag, stealing one of Seungmin’s pens when he can’t find one of his own. After a moment of comfortable silence, Seungmin reaches out across the table, curling his hand into Jeongin’s simply because he can.
A thrill of warm victory zips through him when Jeongin, who pulls away when Hyunjin tries to grab at him or when Jisung tries to plant a kiss on him, glances up at Seungmin with the biggest smile and happily tangles their hands together.
“Don’t distract me.” He warns, eyes narrowed.
Jeongin’s smile doesn’t waver. “I wouldn’t dream of it.”