Work Text
Summer of 2017
"This is a bad idea."
"You think?"
There's a special note he kept track of in his head that contained just about every dumb, impulsive thing his group of friends has done. It's a rather long note, impressively so, and recalling it filled Xu Minghao with more regret than a regular 19 year old boy should have. He wasn't exactly guilt-free when it came to some of the events listed down (such as The Great Grocery Spree of March 23), but he's definitely sure most of the mishaps had either Soonyoung or Junhui at the helm; even worse when it was both.
This time it was surprisingly Chan's doing.
"Let's drive to Daegu, he said. It's only three hours, he said. We can take your car, he said," Soonyoung complained from his spot in the driver's seat. Next to him riding shotgun, Junhui seemed blissfully unaware of what was happening as he continued singing along to the radio just loud enough to be slightly embarrassing. Despite his apparent positivity, it was clear that the sheen of sweat on his forehead meant he was experiencing things in the same manner as the other three boys in the car.
Chan lightly kicked the back of Soonyoung's seat, "it was a good idea. It's not my fault your car's shitty air-conditioning system decided to stop working right before we left."
"We could have taken a nice, cold bus or express train."
"That meant spending more money. Plus that takes more time. This way, we have our stuff in the back of the car and we can take breaks when needed," Chan explained as professionally as he did when he first pitched the idea to them. Beside him, Minghao threw a balled-up piece of paper he had found lying around at his head in an attempt to shut him up and also just a little bit out of spite. The other boy ignored it in favour of continuing his defense against Soonyoung's constant complaints.
Truth be told, it did sound like a pretty solid idea. Even Minghao had to agree. They had spent most of the summer break doing mundane tasks by themselves before the suggestion to take a road trip to Daegu came up. They could stay by the beach since Chan's family had a small rest house around the area, too. It was all going so well until they had met up at Soonyoung's house, got in the car, and eventually found out that the cooling unit refused to work. Thus started their summer ride filled with groaning, complaining about the heat, and sweating, above all.
The brunet peeled himself off the seat with a little bit of effort as he leaned forward to poke his head in the space between the two front seats.
"According to the map, there's a stop about 20 minutes from here. We can eat and cool down before continuing."
Soonyoung stretched his neck to the side with a satisfying pop, "gotcha. Then we can continue with Chan driving this time since this was his brilliant idea."
"I only got my license a few months ago! You can't possibly trust me to drive your car."
"I'll sit shotgun so I can watch you panic and keep an eye on your driving. Doing so in this weather is a pain that I'd like to see you try for yourself since you're adamant about how driving is a good idea."
Chan groaned, "I still don't think it's my fault."
"It is," Junhui piped in just as the radio started playing commercials, signalling the end of his singing session for now. It was a wonder that his throat wasn't dry yet since his water bottle had been emptied out since the start of the trip. He turned to look at the backseat and pointed at the frowning boy. "This was all your idea and we merely followed. Ice cream at the stop is your treat."
"Hey!"
Minghao grinned, "sounds good to me. All in favour?"
"I, Junhui."
"I, Soonyoung."
"And I, Minghao. Majority wins."
“Fuck you guys."
The rest of the ride transpired in a similar fashion. Junhui resumed singing along to the radio, which eventually became all four of them belting out to Soonyoung's collection of 90's music once it was unearthed from the glove compartment. They continued to sweat, but with how fast Soonyoung was driving, it occasionally gave cool bursts of wind that they were all thankful for. They reached the stop soon enough, refilling the car's gas and also their stomachs with food and ice cream (which Chan did pay for, so maybe he was feeling a tad bit guilty, or he was respecting the Code of Majority).
Soon they piled into the car again, with Chan as the designated driver and Soonyoung riding shotgun as planned. Minghao resumed his spot on the right side of the car, throwing on a pair of sunglasses now that the sun was shining from a spot that reached him. They were yet to start driving again though since they were lacking Junhui. The blond boy had decided his shirt was way too damp to continue wearing and had dug around his bag for another one to change into before they left.
"What's taking him so long?" Soonyoung complained.
"The restroom is air-conditioned, I don't blame him," said Chan as he adjusted the side mirrors of the car to his liking.
Minghao was about to add that Junhui always took a long time getting ready, so was it really a surprise he was going to take his time changing into another shirt, too? Before he could, the car door finally opened, followed by the other boy sliding in. He had ditched his earlier bright, yellow shirt—that the boys all called out because of how blinding it was matched with his hair—for a blue tank top that showed off his nicely toned arms.
"Sorry for the wait," he announced, chucking his old shirt somewhere in the back of the car where the bags were.
"Let's go. Drive on, Lee Chan."
Finally settled down, the ride continued a bit more silently this time. Thanks to his sunglasses, Minghao's eyes were shielded from the rest, which meant he could trace down the length of Junhui's arm without fear of the other boy noticing. There was an obvious tan line from where he usually wore a shirt when out in the sun, which he had mentioned wanting to get rid of during their time at the beach. It was a sort of tan that suited him, though. Definitely better than it would have looked on himself, Minghao concluded, forcing himself to look away with that final thought.
They really needed to get out of the car soon.
With an hour left into the trip, Soonyoung had successfully fallen asleep despite the heat, much to the dismay of the current driver. Chan had his eyes trained on the road, appearing calm, although his tight grip on the wheel gave away his anxiety clearly enough. Hopefully, it won't cause them any problems. Minghao couldn't think of a good way to explain to his family how they ended up in a car accident that didn't include telling them that they decided to have the newbie driver drive them for an hour and a half. They'd probably say it was a well-deserved accident, regardless of broken bones.
His negative thoughts were interrupted by Junhui sliding closer to him, having ceased playing games on his phone.
"I'm bored," the blond whined, a small pout on his lips.
Minghao sighed, "aren't we all?"
"Talk to me, Haohao."
"About what? The weather? It's fucking hot, Junhui."
The other boy merely smiled, far too used to Minghao's snark to be fazed by it, "wanna play a game, then?"
"If this is I Spy again, I swear, we're in the middle of nowhere—"
"It's a fun game!" Junhui shot back immediately. "It's not my fault all you see are the trees and fields, Hao."
Minghao rolled his eyes, "that's literally all there is to see, Jun.”
The brunet gestured around them. Chan had entered one of the smaller roads, with fewer cars and ultimately less scenery, too. Sure, there was an occasional house or lamp post along the way, but it was clear that greenery took up most of whatever view they had. Not to mention, they were driving at a pace that didn't really allow one to bask in the view. Junhui looked around, protest slowly dying on his lips, before letting out a huff. Defeated, he chose instead to rest his head on the other's shoulder.
"Fine. Lend me your shoulder then, I'll take a nap."
"Lean on the car door, Junhui, it's hot enough already without having you stick on me," Minghao complained, half-heartedly nudging at Junhui's body in an attempt to push him off. They both knew that if Minghao really wanted to push him off, he could easily do so, so the fact that Junhui remained on his shoulder was a silent agreement. The latter hummed in contentment, moving his head to a better position (anywhere that's not directly on Minghao's boney shoulder) and angling his body until it was comfortable enough, too.
"Thanks, Haohao."
"Mhm."
The thing is, Minghao could never say no to him, anyway.
He wasn't sure when it started. One day, he was just suddenly aware that he may have been attracted to his best friend. Honestly, who wasn't at least a little bit attracted to Wen Junhui? An attraction that grew, slowly, into something more. Love? Maybe, but it was a bit too cliche to say he was in love with his best friend. As far as he knew, Junhui treated him the same as he did Soonyoung and Chan, and probably everybody else he was friends with. Hopefully, his own feelings weren't painfully obvious. Minghao really can't say, sometimes.
In front of him, he could just barely make out Soonyoung's head bobbing and moving haphazardly according to the direction the car turned. He didn't even wake up despite the harsh movements. Minghao glanced at the rearview mirror and was surprised to find Chan staring back at him, a knowing look in his eyes as if he had watched the entire scene earlier unfold before the other boy focused on the road again.
"Try resting yourself, man. I'll wake you guys when we get there."
Junhui's head shifted, but overall remained nestled on his shoulder, a comfortable weight despite the heat.
"Alright. Thanks, Chan."
Sleep didn't exactly come quickly, or at all, but Minghao did feel a few moments of unconsciousness that could have passed for a quick nap. If only his mind had stopped racing and he wasn't so hyper-aware of the resting boy on his shoulder, then maybe things could have gone a bit better. Almost as if he never shut them at all, his eyes soon opened to see them driving by a sign welcoming them to Daegu, just before Chan turned the radio on at max volume to act as a wake-up call.
“Wake up, you sleepy bastards! You’ve left me awake alone long enough.”
“Five more minutes,” Junhui mumbled, nudging his head closer to Minghao, the tips of his blond hair just barely brushing against the latter’s neck. The sensation led a tingle to go through Minghao’s spine, travelling from his neck down to lower regions he’d really rather not think about right now. Clearing his head, he managed to push the blond off him with a not-too-forceful shove.
Minghao ignored the whine that followed and quickly got off the car once it screeched to a stop, eager to get away and not deal with what just happened.
The warmth of the sun that greeted him paired with the refreshing ocean breeze was enough to calm his thoughts down. Soon, the four boys began piling into the beach house, hauling in their bags and also an ice chest already pre-packed with beer and other alcohol. There was always an unspoken agreement when it came to their rooming arrangements; when it started, Minghao wasn’t too sure, but he knew he was going to end up rooming with Junhui for this trip as well.
He had entered one of the rooms to find twin beds already occupied by large duffel bags. The owners, Chan and Soonyoung, were elsewhere exploring the house. Minghao sighed and searched for the next bedroom, only to see Junhui already standing there, back towards the door. He was staring at what Minghao ended up staring at as well— the room that they were left to occupy only had one queen-sized bed, probably where Chan’s parents usually stayed when they were here.
Junhui looked back when Minghao dropped his bag on the floor.
“They got the other room first, right? Figured Chan would race there,” the blond said with a chuckle, placing his own bag on one the dresser available. He grinned, carefree and easy, “it’ll be like that Busan trip a few years back when all of us cramped in twin beds because Soonyoung couldn’t book a room properly. At least this one is bigger?”
Minghao nodded, throat dry at the memory of the last time he had to share a bed with Junhui—way before he first realized his feelings for his friend, so it wasn’t a problem then—and moved to place his own bag next to his side of the bed. He mentally chided himself for even thinking that he had a specific side of the bed already, but it really was on instinct that he stayed on the left side of the room while Junhui took the right.
“Do you know where the other guys went?”
“Somewhere around the house,” Minghao replied after collecting his thoughts, not facing the other boy as he fixed his stuff. There was a slight pause and the sound of scuffling feet before Junhui spoke again.
“I’ll go look for them. Come down when you’re done.”
“Sure.”
It was silly how awkward the past few minutes were to him. Minghao knew that and hoped Junhui didn’t notice. If he knew the blond well enough, Junhui wasn’t the type to read into things anyway, so he was probably safe. There was no reason for Minghao to be so on the edge about everything. After all, it was a planned friendly trip, a relaxing getaway; no need to dwell on how he’s been harbouring hidden feelings for his best friend long enough and well hidden enough to remember.
The bed could fit three people, anyway, so it’s not like he’ll be that close to Junhui.
Hopefully, their nights would be a drunken haze so he wouldn’t have to be so aware of it.
Grabbing a cap from his bag and deeming it appropriately fit for his outfit, Minghao headed downstairs to see the others setting up the Playstation that Chan had brought along. Junhui was staring disapprovingly at the other two as Soonyoung was flipping through the game discs. The Chinese boy perked up when Minghao entered the living room.
“Haohao, stop them! We’re at the beach and they want to stay in and play video games!” Junhui complained, appalled, as he pointed at the two that were settled on the floor.
“You agreed when I asked if I should bring the Playstation, Jun,” Chan said dismissively.
The blond rolled his eyes, “I thought we were gonna play at night or something, or if there’s suddenly a typhoon that traps us in here, not when the sun is out and the weather is perfect. That’s why we’re at a beach, to begin with.”
“Junhui’s right,” Minghao said, nudging at Chan and Soonyoung with his foot from where he stood. “I didn’t ride in that sauna you call a car for us to do something I can do back home. Ass off the floor and into the ocean.”
“Race ya there!”
Soonyoung took off immediately after he said so, heading for the door in a mad dash that was soon followed by Junhui and Chan. Minghao knew Junhui was going to end up overtaking the other boy soon enough, what with his long legs and all, and decided it just wasn’t worth the extra hassle to join in. He followed behind them at a leisurely pace, laughing when Chan ended up tripping into the sand and another time when Soonyoung cursed at Junhui for passing him while the latter grinned in triumph.
Things were beginning to feel like it was back to normal—and by normal, it meant something along the lines of Minghao being able to act naturally—until they all stopped at the beach shore, and Junhui immediately took off his shirt to head for a swim. Thankfully, the cap on Minghao’s head didn’t make his staring too obvious, but after a few seconds made himself look away. It wasn’t the first time he’s seen the other boy shirtless since Junhui was hardly shy, but maybe it was the heat from the car ride messing with his head a little bit more than usual today.
The other guys followed suit soon after, leaving Minghao the only one fully clothed on the beach.
Which was, of course, spotted immediately.
“Hey, aren’t you getting in?” Soonyoung asked, already by the ocean shore.
Minghao shook his head, “I’ll bask in the sun from here.”
“No way,” Chan complained, waist-deep in the ocean already. “You specifically said ass off the floor and into the ocean. That includes you, Minghao!”
“I haven’t changed into swimming trunks,” he tried reasoning out again but knew it was a lost cause the moment Soonyoung and Junhui made eye contact. Minghao tried to get up and run, but he was too late as the two immediately swooped in. He didn’t even know how the two managed to move so quickly; Soonyoung aimed for his legs as the brunet kicked and thrashed, while Junhui supported him via his torso, arms wrapped around the smaller boy’s frame.
In just a few seconds, Minghao was successfully thrown into the ocean, but at least they had the decency to get rid of his cap first.
“I hate all of you,” he deadpanned as he emerged from under the water, the laughter of his other friends ringing in his ears. Minghao’s annoyance lasted about two seconds before he was grinning as well, aiming splashes at whoever was unfortunate enough to be near him. It ended up becoming a bit of a water fight before everything died down along with the setting of the sun. The four boys soon made their way back to the house.
Junhui was grinning the whole way there, “now that was fun.”
Well. Minghao smiled despite himself and had to agree.
Upon reaching the house, Soonyoung and Chan called dibs when it came to showering first; which they all knew meant by the time either of them would be finished, the remaining boys would probably be dry already. Junhui had tried to distract Chan and race to one of the bathrooms first, but his plan didn’t work this time, which left the two Chinese boys resting on the porch instead after a fresh change of clothes.
“We should do something while we wait,” Junhui suggested.
“Like what?”
He hummed in thought, silence passing between them for a while before his expression brightened.
“Let’s grab Soonyoung’s car and head to the nearest market. We need meat for tonight’s barbecue, right?” the blond said with a wide grin—whether it was because of the prospect of grilled meat that night or the idea of stealing Soonyoung’s car, Minghao didn’t know, but he definitely didn’t disagree with either of the two. Even if Junhui was hands down the worst driver of the bunch, even next to the newbie Chan.
Minghao smirked, “sure, I’m up for a night of almost killing myself, why not?”
They got the keys from Soonyoung’s bedside table, yelled that they were going out, and promptly ignored whatever complaint the orange-haired boy shouted at them through the door. Probably something about making sure Junhui doesn’t wreck his car, but hey, it’s not their fault if they suddenly can’t understand Korean at that moment. It was going to be a quick drive, anyway. Especially with how fast Junhui drove.
Sure enough, it took them a little less than 10 minutes in total to drive to the market and back to the house. Junhui drove at his crazy, breakneck speed and normally Minghao would ask him to tone it down, but he was up for being reckless every now and then. They arrived at the market in record speed, picked out whichever cuts of meat looked good, cashed it on Soonyoung’s credit card while they were at it, and headed back. All the while laughing and having a good time.
For the first time since they started the whole trip, Minghao finally felt relaxed.
“Is my baby okay?” Soonyoung exclaimed dramatically when they got out of the car, rushing to the car’s side to inspect all angles. “Did the bad man Wen Junhui hurt you?”
“Your car’s fine,” Junhui said with a satisfied grin. “Your credit card though? Maybe not.”
He whipped out the card from his back pocket and threw it at Minghao, who caught it easily, just as Soonyoung ran to tackle Junhui from the side. The tall boy fell down with a satisfied laugh as the brunet raced inside the house, heading to the backyard with their groceries where Chan was already setting up the grill.
“Hey, Lee Chan,” Minghao greeted innocently, still panting a little from the running he had to do. From the distance, he could hear Junhui yell. He set the meat on a table nearby, grinning at the other boy.
“Alright, what did you guys do?”
“Got his car. Got his card. Got us meat. Nothing out of the ordinary.”
“Right.”
“Good job on that grill,” he snickered, just as the backdoor threw open to reveal a disheveled Junhui with Soonyoung in tow.
Soonyoung stared at the pile of meat and frowned, “that doesn’t look like you spent a little to me at all, Junhui, you fucker.”
The blond boy in question laughed, “hey, you’re eating from that, too. Think about it as a good service to your friends and you know, what’s that term again?”
“Treat yo’self,” Minghao supplied, heading to the ice chest and popping open one of the many beer bottles already. He lifted it up in a form of cheers towards Soonyoung, who merely rolled his eyes at the gesture before getting a bottle of his own. Any spite he felt for the two boys gone in an instant.
After that, things fell into routine.
Routine for them went like this. There’s always someone on the grill, supplying meat until they’ve had too much to eat. It’ll rotate among them until they realize that Junhui cooked the best and Soonyoung couldn’t cook for shit. Drinks were an unlimited resource, at least in their minds, at least for the night. The cooler with drinks never stopped providing them. They’ve got beer, along with bottles of soju, and a few stronger stuff even if they know they’re not into getting blackout drunk with just four people around.
Dinner would easily turn into a life-sharing kind of affair once the meat was all gone, with Chan on his fourth bottle and already tipsy, talking about something philosophical. Soonyoung would just be on his third, but far more lost than Chan, his topic being something more sweet and sappy. Stuff like how fast time flies, how much he’ll miss moments like that night, gathered together in the backyard. Junhui always had something crazy or stupid to say, bottles steadily growing by his side even as he remained levelheaded.
For Minghao, it was nights like these that made him wish he was significantly less tolerant of alcohol. He already had soju along with the beers, but everything was still pretty clear to him. Unfortunately, the one who was the clearest of them all had to be the bright, blond head of hair who sat across him on the lawn.
Alcohol did very little to fully fuck his system up, but it sure did fuck with his heart the most.
He would try to ignore the way Junhui’s head tipped back as he drank, the bob of his adam’s apple against his smooth throat, how much Minghao was dying to mark the smooth expanse of exposed skin. Dangerous territory. He took another swig, and another, and another, all while hoping it finally served some purpose and made him forget about his feelings for his best friend. None of them did, and he found himself matching the pile Junhui made for himself.
Minghao wondered if Junhui was drinking to forget something, too.
Their eyes met. Before he could look away, Junhui raised a fresh bottle at him and grinned, mouthing something that Minghao couldn’t decipher at the moment. Probably something about how Chan was close to passing out. Either way, the night continued until the alcohol eventually ran out from the cooler, and from their system. It was enough to leave a light buzz, if anything, as they all began heading back to their rooms with thrown out promises to clean up the next day.
In the midst of all his wallowing, Minghao almost forgot he was sharing a bed with Junhui.
Just almost.
Too drunk to care at this point, he crawled onto his side of the bed and wanted to pass out. He desperately wanted to pass out, actually, but knew if he slept without brushing his teeth he’ll just end up with more things to regret. The taste of alcohol in the morning was worse than a hangover, that’s for sure. So he decided to sit and watch Junhui enter the room soon after him, asking about using the bathroom first while Minghao waved at him to do whatever he wanted, not caring at all.
The tap opened, and closed, and opened again as Minghao listened to the water flow. He was still sat by the edge of the bed, contemplating whether he should bother changing into pajamas. He should probably change his shirt, though, having worn it all day. The room’s air-conditioning wasn’t that cold either, so maybe just shorts. As he moved to prepare his stuff, the bathroom door opened to reveal Junhui, already shirtless.
Of course. When did he ever sleep with a shirt on anyway?
Fucking exhibitionist.
“Your turn,” Junhui announced, just as Minghao got up quickly to walk past him and into the bathroom.
There was, well, a problem on hand. Pun not entirely intended as he palmed his growing erection through his shorts. It wasn’t the first time that day that he saw Junhui shirtless, so it must have been the alcohol talking when it continued to flash him images of the blond’s arms and shoulders, the lean abs and smooth skin. Again, his throat as they drank. He usually didn’t care about that sort of thing, but Minghao figured he’d rather fix the problem now than share a bed with the reason he had a raging hard-on in the first place.
He turned the shower along with the water faucet on just in case, so it could block out the sounds he was bound to make. He’ll apologize to Chan’s family for the water bill.
Most importantly, it would help quiet the name he was saying under his breath as he stroked himself, coming out in harsh breaths. Junhui’s name fell out of his lips almost like a spell, slowly at first then faster, matching the rhythm of his hand. He didn’t even know when he managed to pull his shorts down lower. His eyes were squeezed tight, thoughts wandering further away from Junhui just being shirtless, before he came onto the bathroom floor, spilling a bit on his hand.
Minghao finished up quickly after, turning the shower’s temperature to cold just for the sake of it, but it still managed to keep his face warm.
When he left the bathroom, he was surprised to find Junhui already lying down, back turned towards the door. Maybe the alcohol did get to his system this time, if he was already sleepy this early. Then again, it’s been a long day for all of them; for Minghao, most of all, as he closed the lights and slid under the covers. It was just one blanket, but it’ll have to do. As long as he was careful with his movements, Junhui shouldn’t wake up.
He purposely slept facing away from Junhui, certain that seeing the blond’s sleeping face wasn’t good for him just yet. There was a hint of guilt within him, too. Sure, it wasn’t the first time he jerked off to the thought of his friend, but doing so when he was right there was new. It was Junhui’s fault to begin with, anyway, looking like a god and having the body of one, too.
Just as he was complaining about Junhui in his head, Minghao felt the other boy shift in his sleep.
“Hao?” Junhui spoke softly, but the sound was piercing in the silence of the dark room.
“Yeah?”
“Took you awhile in the bathroom.”
His heart thumping in panic, Minghao told himself there was no way Junhui knew.
“Well, I had to wash off today’s sweat and the smell of the grill smoke,” he replied, thankful that his voice came out naturally enough, with just a hint of his usual snark. A moment or two passed in silence, as Minghao wondered if Junhui had fallen asleep despite the conversation. It was then that he heard the unmistakable rustle of the blanket moving, feeling it only seconds later move against his own skin, and the weight of Junhui shifting on the bed. Closer.
“Apple scented shampoo?” Junhui asked as he moved in, breath warm and distracting against Minghao’s neck. Their bodies weren’t touching, no, but the brunet was sure that if he inched back a little bit then he would hit Junhui’s chest. When Minghao didn’t reply, the other boy continued with a small chuckle. “You’ve been using that since forever, Minghao.”
Minghao scoffed, “yeah, well, it’s good on my hair.”
“Hm, yeah. Can’t argue with that.”
Featherlight touches fell on his hair and Minghao couldn’t help but shudder at the unexpected touch; he hated Junhui’s habit of touching his hair, absolutely hated it, except he really didn’t. It just wasn’t something he wanted to deal with that night, feelings and guilt and all. Minghao ducked his head forward to escape the touch, moving farther to the left of his pillow, away from Junhui’s hand.
“I’m trying to sleep, Jun, not tonight.”
A low chuckle came from the other boy, “not tonight? So tomorrow night is fine?”
“Go to sleep.”
“You didn’t answer.”
“Go the fuck to sleep, Junhui.”
“Fine,” Junhui sighed in defeat. The blanket moved again along with his weight shifting backward, back towards his side of the bed, as Minghao finally allowed himself to relax. His heart was still a mess, but at least now he didn’t have to worry about Junhui hearing it. He felt the movement of Junhui finding a good position to sleep in, before eventually taking note of the change in his breathing. He always did fall asleep right away.
Minghao didn’t know how long it took, but he soon fell into a dreamless sleep.
It didn’t feel that much like he slept at all when he opened his eyes to sunlight shining through his side of the room, bright and blinding. He should have closed the curtains last night. His head was only mildly hurting, not quite a hangover from drinking, but perhaps from his whirlwind of thoughts and emotions the day before. The memories came flooding back in almost immediately when he awoke. Bits and pieces of the drive to Daegu and the night they had.
Speaking of. The brunet rolled around to face Junhui, who was still fast asleep. As easily as he slept, he definitely wasn’t easy to wake up. Minghao was glad about that fact for once, as he allowed himself the liberty of staring at the blond’s peaceful sleeping face. Junhui didn’t exactly snore, but he did make this weird, soft whistle noise as he slept. He wasn’t bound to wake up any time soon, neither was the brunet going to fall asleep again, so Minghao excused himself from the bed.
After a quick trip to the bathroom, he soon found himself in the kitchen.
He was just about to rummage for something he could eat when Minghao heard footsteps falling behind him.
Quick and light. Definitely Soonyoung.
A bright blob of orange hair soon appeared next to him. The other boy was clearly both sleepy and hungover, his eyes barely opening as he stood next to Minghao without a word. The latter chuckled, knowing full well that what the other boy needed was a cup of coffee. Maybe some bacon. He really should get back to looking for food, even if it wasn’t his house. Chan would understand; he would need the same sustenance, after all.
A quick glance at the clock said it was actually already one o’clock in the afternoon. Coffee and bacon would probably still be alright.
“Take a seat, I’ll get started on something.”
“Lifesaver,” Soonyoung croaked out as he fell into one of the kitchen stool bars, automatically resting his head on his arms.
After a while, Minghao did manage to find some bacon, along with an easy-to-cook bag of fries. Nothing like grease to start the day. He went on to cook as well as whip up some coffee for all of them—except Junhui, who was probably going to look for milk, like a child—and soon things fell into a comfortable silence. Other than the sizzle of the pan and Soonyoung’s occasional slurping sounds as he tried to drink his hot coffee.
The smell eventually brought Chan to the kitchen as well, looking just as bad as Soonyoung did minutes before, his dark hair standing up in tufts on his head.
“Good morning to you, too,” Minghao said sarcastically, shaking his head at how his friends were. He’s glad Junhui didn’t get hangovers, otherwise, he would have to be the only coherent person that morning. Right on cue, the blond appeared as well, a small smile already on his face as he eyed Chan and Soonyoung, who were quiet for once.
He grinned before loudly exclaiming, “hey, sunshines! What’s up on this beautiful day?”
Chan flipped him the finger, “fuck off with the shouting, Junhui.”
“My ears,” Soonyoung groaned, letting go of his coffee to cover his ears. “My head.”
“Alright, sorry,” Junhui said, softer this time but not apologetic at all, as he made his way to the fridge to grab the milk. Minghao placed Chan’s coffee in front of him, earning a strangled cry of joy, and soon the rest of the food was good to go. He placed the oily plate of bacon and fries in the center of the table, not bothering with plates and utensils, even if that meant Chan almost burning his finger in the process of stealing a piece of bacon right away.
They ate in silence, even as Junhui and Minghao shared knowing looks about how long the other two will remain in such a bad state.
It didn’t take long before Soonyoung looked like he can actually open his eyes and handle the light now, munching on the food with enthusiasm.
“This is so fucking good,” he said, thanking Minghao for the food.
“Dude, all I did was soak it in oil,” Minghao deadpanned, before breaking into a grin when Chan began to worship the food as well. It was a good sign that the two were feeling better already.
With most of the day already gone, the boys deemed it was best to finally make use of the Playstation they dragged all the way to Daegu. Clearly forgetting yesterday’s comment about enjoying the beach, Minghao easily agreed. Hours passed with multiple games played among them—most of which had Junhui winning, which wasn’t accepted by Chan, who claimed to be the king of gaming. Not that they weren’t used to Junhui excelling in everything at this point, but it was still worth a shot. Winning against Junhui was a celebration for everybody included.
“This is bumming me out,” Chan complained after losing at Mario Kart for the 4th time in a row.
“Seems fun for me.”
“Shut up, Jun.”
Soonyoung stretched from his place lounging on the floor, “what’s on tonight’s agenda, boys?”
“There’s a beach party happening tonight,” Chan replied, passing the controller to Minghao, who began to flip through the games as he listened to the conversation. “Always one every Wednesday night. It’s at a club not too far from here if we walk along the beach. Drinks, music, dancing. You guys up for it?”
Soonyoung said a ‘hell yeah’ at the same time as Minghao said ‘not really’.
Junhui turned to the brunet almost immediately, “not in the mood?”
“Never been the beach party type,” Minghao replied honestly. The idea of being around and grinding with drunk strangers wasn’t anything new; it was doing so where sand could get anywhere and also the possibility that some of those people will be wet—and getting wet himself due to the close ocean—that just wasn’t appealing at all.
“Bummer,” Soonyoung said, visibly deflated.
“Hey, you guys can still go,” the brunet said, waving a hand as if to dismiss the sudden sadness. “You know me, I don’t mind being left alone.”
“We’re at the beach together for a reason, though. I mean, wouldn’t wanna force ya to do something you don’t want to, but…”
“As if you bastards haven’t left me to my own devices before,” Minghao said with a chuckle, remembering countless times where his drunk friends have managed to leave him after a night of supposed hanging out. He cocked an eyebrow at the orange-haired boy as he said so, which caused the latter to cheer up slightly. As if remembering the same, Soonyoung grinned sheepishly.
“You sure?”
Minghao scoffed, “of course. Feel free to leave me alone.”
“I’ll stay.”
At Junhui’s voice, Minghao turned his head so fast he could have sworn he heard it crack a little. The other boy wasn’t even looking at him, choosing instead to look at Soonyoung and Chan with a small smile on his lips. It was looked playful, but sincere, as he continued to explain how he can stay with Minghao for the night. He claimed that he was still tired from the night before and could use a break in between activities. Funny how it came from the only other one who didn’t get hungover.
“We could watch a movie here,” he was still saying, while Minghao could only listen in mild shock. It would be weird to disagree. “Bring back Movie Night Mondays.”
“It’s Wednesday,” Minghao found himself saying instead of saying what he really felt. It’s never been awkward with just the two of them, but it’s recently been too much. Too much of something, too much of nothing, and another night spent with Junhui just wasn’t good for him. If anything, he needed a night away from the blond. Voicing it out meant letting the others know, though, which wasn’t something he needed.
“Movie Night Wednesdays then,” Junhui said smoothly, the smile still on his face.
Chan spoke up first afterward, “well, if we’re not leaving Hao alone, I feel less bad about going to the party. You still in, Soonyoung?”
The orange-haired boy glanced back and forth between the two Chinese boys in the living room, as if there was something he still wanted to say. Instead, he nodded his head, grinned widely enough to disperse earlier’s awkwardness, and began to exclaim how excited and ready he was to head out. A joke was passed among them about how Minghao should be ready with hangover food tomorrow as well. Minghao could only manage a nod and a weak smile.
With that settled, Soonyoung went back to the Playstation, challenging Junhui alone for a quick match. Minghao excused himself silently to wander around in the kitchen, trying to figure out how he was going to deal with being stuck with Junhui for the night when Chan appeared by the doorway.
“Hey,” the black-haired boy greeted.
Minghao grunted, “not watching them play?”
“Nah,” Chan said easily, settling himself on one of the kitchen stools instead. “I wanted to talk to you, though. Would you be okay left here with just Junhui?”
The brunet froze. Just how much did Chan know? He glanced at the other boy and sure enough, Chan was watching him with knowing eyes, the same ones from back in the car the day before, eyes that somehow knew what he was feeling despite Minghao never opening up to any of them about it. Hell, he was probably obvious. Soonyoung probably knew, too. Everybody probably knew except for Junhui himself.
Returning to the question on hand, Minghao nodded.
“I’ll manage,” he said with a smile, a wider one this time as he still found an excuse slipping through his mouth. “He’s a pain, but we’ve been friends for so long, anyway. We’ll be fine.”
“Uh-huh,” Chan said, clearly not buying it. “As long as you know what I mean, man.”
Minghao blinked, the smile fading a bit, replaced with a somber look. He could hear Junhui and Soonyoung yell from the living room just next door, with Junhui being just a tad bit louder—sounds like he was actually losing this time. He turned to Chan and nodded again.
“Yeah. Yeah, I do.”
The events passed in almost a blur to brunet since then, counting the hours. All of them continued playing until the sun began to set. Too lazy to cook again that night, the boys settled for take out of chicken and jjajangmyeon noodles, with extra slices of kimbap for the Soonyoung and Chan to make sure they don’t pass out right away at the party. They got ready to the best of their ability and beach attire, before leaving for the night. Minghao found it way too early for them to leave since parties don’t start till much later, but Chan had ushered Soonyoung out with a small wink towards the Chinese boy.
Whatever that meant (he did know, but knew nothing was going to happen anyway).
As soon as they left, Junhui immediately went on Netflix and began scanning through the movies available. At least Soonyoung didn’t make any “Netflix and chill” jokes, even though Minghao could tell that was on his mind. Even without saying anything, the other boy probably knew of Minghao’s dilemma, after all. He settled himself on the couch in front of the TV, sitting with space in between the two of them to fit one more person, idly responding to Junhui’s movie choices.
“Want something scary?”
“While we’re alone in a rest house? No thanks, I don’t need the paranoia,” Minghao said. “Either someone’s gonna burst into the house, or you’ll be the one murdering me. I won’t take my chances.”
“Fine,” the blond replied, still searching. “Superhero movies? Marvel?”
“We’ve watched all of those with the other guys.”
“Disney then. Moana or Zootopia?”
“You’re shitting me.”
“Not one bit,” Junhui said cheerfully, as the screen began to play Zootopia regardless.
Minghao wasn’t going to make this awkward. He’s had feelings for a while now, and if anything, he was good at ignoring it and keeping things natural. It would be just like any other day they were together. Even with the living room lights closed (“For the proper movie ambiance, Haohao!”) and the idea of watching a movie next to each other with just the slightest bit of space between them. It wasn’t even a romantic movie, by any means.
The space between them dwindled as the movie went on, what with Junhui’s habit of whispering into Minghao’s ear whenever he had a comment as if they were at an actual theater.
Next thing he knew, they were practically leaning against each other, feet propped up on the low coffee table in front. Minghao made snide remarks about how much Nick the fox resembled Junhui’s features, but shut up immediately once the tables were turned and he was likened to the bunny. They were right at the moment where Judy Hopps had just found out the real culprit behind all the attacks when it happened.
It was slow, almost gradual, and truth be told Minghao didn’t see it coming. They had linked arms some time into the movie, easy and natural, with Junhui’s arm originally just leaning over, before snaking around and over his. Minghao barely noticed, too engrossed in the movie to care. It wasn’t until Junhui lined their hands up and locked them did it occur to him that they were holding hands, finger entwined and all like it was the most natural thing to do.
Minghao pulled back as if electrocuted.
Pouting, Junhui mumbled a soft, “I was hoping you wouldn’t notice.”
“Wouldn’t notice?” Minghao parroted, a hint of panic rising in his voice. “Who wouldn’t notice someone holding their hand, Junhui, really?”
“You didn’t notice when we linked arms.”
“That’s different, you do that all the time,” the brunet dismissed, although he could feel the heat rising up in his cheeks.
“We’ve held hands before,” Junhui replied back just as nonchalantly. “What’s the difference now?”
“What’s the difference? You can’t be serious, what’s the di—“
The volume of his voice was raised significantly higher as he began, before coming to a stop. Junhui watched him, waiting for him to continue, as Minghao struggled to find his voice. What was the difference, this time, at least to Junhui? For the blond, this was a regular movie session, nothing out of the ordinary. All the other times they’ve held hands—whether it was due to the need to drag the other to places, a school activity, anything—was just that. Two hands linked together.
Still, they were watching a movie, it was dark and intimate even with just that, pressed against together and sharing body heat along with it didn’t make it any better. Minghao felt foolish. Of course, to Junhui, none of this mattered. It didn’t mean the same thing, right?
“You’re right,” Minghao finally spoke, quiet but with a hint of edge to his voice that could even be considered icy. Why was he even mad? Junhui didn’t know what he was doing. “There’s no difference now.”
“You look disgusted to even be on the same couch as me, Hao.”
The nickname sounded almost sarcastic as Junhui spoke, which surprised Minghao because out of the four of them, Junhui was always the happy one. He was, truth be told, the nice one between just the two. He was rarely sarcastic, teasing only when it was in a happy situation, mischievous only when it came to fun. He would probably not even hurt a fly if he had the chance, so the sudden displeasure and bitterness in his words were unnatural.
Their eyes met, and for a split second, Minghao thought he saw hurt in them.
“Well, whatever,” Junhui said flippantly, leaning back down onto the couch. The distance they had between them earlier was back as he held the remote in his hand, backtracking the movie.
Minghao had to fix this, didn’t he?
“I’m not disgusted,” he started, slowly falling into place beside the other boy, wondering if he should close the distance. He didn’t. “I really just overreacted. That’s it.”
“I know. Some reaction you’ve got there.”
“Jun,” the brunet said with an exasperated sigh. “I’m sorry. You know I’m only disgusted by you when you eat your bananas with peanut butter.”
The small joke seemed to work in easing the sudden tension in the air, as Junhui’s shoulders visibly relaxed the moment Minghao spoke. Next thing he knew, there was a smile on the other boy’s face, teasing as always.
“Whatever,” Junhui said, this time without malice. “At least I’m not the weirdo who eats cereal with warm milk.”
Minghao punched his arm lightly as the rest of the movie continued without incident.
They were on their third movie—still Disney, Moana came after Zootopia, as they now decided on a classic and chose Mulan—when Minghao allowed himself to think back on what happened. From the corner of his eye, he could see Junhui still glued to the TV, even if that was their what, 17th time watching the movie? Still, it allowed Minghao to notice that after his sudden outburst, Junhui had kept himself at a distance. Their shoulders would only touch briefly when Junhui whispered, but he always went back to his original spot right after.
Cursing himself silently in his head, Minghao wondered if getting worked up was a bad idea.
They were holding hands. He should have been ecstatic, right?
What did Junhui even mean by it? That was the biggest thing bugging Minghao the longer he thought about it. He had originally dismissed it as just nothing, just Junhui being Junhui, but the blond did say something that caught his attention. He was hoping Minghao wouldn’t notice. Well, notice what, exactly? If he didn’t mean anything by holding hands, then surely Junhui shouldn’t have cared about it—but he did, he appeared to care quite a lot, actually.
Still, it just wasn’t an easy feat for Minghao to just brush things off like that. Especially not with all his feelings bubbling up inside him again, fresh memories from the night before assaulting his head, and overall just Junhui’s presence next to him on the couch. Near, but not quite. here, easy to touch, easy to hold, but they weren’t. Not anymore, at least. Maybe he did fuck up big time. He knew Junhui well enough to know the blond would soon forget whatever grudge he was still holding, even if he did keep himself away at the moment.
Forcefully pushing his thoughts and feelings out of his mind, Minghao settled to watch the movie.
“Is Mulan our last movie for tonight?” Junhui asked calmly some time close to the end, with Mulan finally saving China and all that. He glanced at the wall clock and continued, “it’s almost 3AM. We could stay up and wait for them if you want.”
Minghao shook his head, “nah, those guys can handle themselves.”
“So sleep, then?”
“Yeah,” Minghao nodded, willing himself to ignore that they shared a bed.
The movie ended quickly after that, with Minghao heading to get ready for bed first since Junhui insisted. The latter still wanted to check some of the new releases and shows available before heading up, apparently, which Minghao didn’t find odd at all. Thankfully, the events of the night sobered up his feelings to an extent that he was able to finish getting ready without being distracted by Junhui again.
It was going so well up until Minghao exited the bathroom, hair still wet from a late-night bath.
Junhui was already seated on the bed, facing the bathroom as he idly fiddled with his phone. He looked up upon hearing the door open, smiling at little bit at the sight of the brunet with damp hair and wet skin.
“I could smell the apple from out here,” the blond teased.
“Quit making fun of my shampoo, at least I don’t have a ton of beauty products,” Minghao quipped when he left, making his way to the other side of the room. He began to fix through his bag with no real purpose in an attempt not to look at the other boy, who continued to speak from behind him.
Junhui scoffed, “hey, all of those products work well. I mean, have you seen me?”
“Unfortunately, yes.”
“Just because you don’t need products to look good doesn’t mean you can make fun of me, Haohao.”
The brunet stilled his movements, letting the compliment wash over him for a while. Again, not the first time Junhui would joke about stuff like that; he even says it seriously every now and then, even to Soonyoung and Chan. Minghao willed himself to relax, to remember that there was no real, deep meaning behind the words. He tried, but he couldn’t, as the lack of response merely prompted the other boy to continue and fill in the silence.
“Not all of us can be born with such a cute face like yours.”
“Quit the cheesy flirting, Junhui,” Minghao said with a bit of a bite, momentarily annoyed that he was being teased, but still trying to keep his cool. He finally decided to whirl around and face the other boy with what he hoped was a serious expression. “You’re not hearing anything back from me. Knock it off.”
“Why not? I thought you liked me.”
The brunet’s eyes widened, taken aback for a moment too long as he stammered out a response. It was just another joke.
“Like you? As if, Junhui, you’re only my friend because I put up with you.”
“No,” Junhui said, a bit too calmly for Minghao’s taste as he rose from the bed. He eyed Minghao for a few seconds, before slowly making his way to the other boy as he took a step with each word he said. “That’s not what I meant. I’m sure you know what I mean, Hao.”
He stopped just a few steps away from Minghao, who was frozen in place even if every fiber of his being was telling him to run. Junhui was back to being so close—close enough to touch, really, if he just extended an arm—yet he couldn’t bring himself to do it. Minghao could never do anything; that was pretty much the reason why he was stuck wallowing in his feelings instead of possibly fucking his best friend into the bed, not that he considered it a good idea.
The entire thing was a very bad idea. Minghao could tell what Junhui wanted to do next. He could trace how the blond’s eyes went from meeting his eyes, to falling down to his lips, before tracing down the rest of his body, making him shiver in silent anticipation. He almost did. He would have almost allowed what was about to happen to just happen, as Junhui took one small step towards him again, a teasing smile of all things present on his face. He knew he should have stopped it,
“I really thought this would happen when we were drunk and shitfaced,” Minghao muttered instead, just as Junhui leaned in and closed the distance between them.
Junhui’s kisses were what Minghao always secretly imagined them to be like. It was sweet and soft despite the earlier tense atmosphere, coaxing in just the right way as he would pull away every now and then, just a little, before going back in. It was playful if he had to describe it in just a word, which was pretty much Junhui’s entire personality as well. Minghao almost allowed himself to enjoy being kissed by his best friend, just almost, before he pushed the other boy away.
Hurt was visible on the other boy’s face immediately.
“You can’t,” Minghao started to say, mind reeling, unsure exactly what he wanted to say to begin with. The kiss had been great, of course, everything he’s ever dreamed of, except he couldn’t get rid of the gnawing feeling that despite all that, Junhui still wasn’t his. “You can’t just waltz around, not telling me anything, mock my feelings, and then just kiss me, Junhui.”
“Not tell you anything?” Junhui replied, eyebrows raised, tone still scarily calm. “Because you’ve been so vocal yourself, huh, Minghao?”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“It means, maybe I’ve been waiting for something to happen for a long time now. Maybe I’m not as dense or clueless as I appear to be—yes, I know what you feel. Maybe instead of mocking what you felt,” Junhui said in a rush, hands gesturing here and there like he always did whenever he was nervous about something. The sight made Minghao soften a little.
“I brought it up just to be sure, because you’ve been just as quiet and all over the place, too. How do you think I feel, thinking it was normal and alright to hold your hand and then have you push me away? And then, have you push me away a second time, even though I know you were kissing back—”
He stopped, exhaled loudly, before once again closing the distance with one small step, making their foreheads touch.
“Hao, I want to know what you’re thinking and how you feel just as badly, believe me,” Junhui said softly, which was all it took for Minghao’s resolve and stupid pride regarding his feelings to go crumbling down. He tilted his head just so and soon the two were kissing again.
Now it felt like a proper kiss, as the soft kisses from earlier quickly became something more steamy as Minghao began to nibble on the other’s bottom lip, impatient for whatever was going to happen next. Junhui chuckled as he allowed the intrusion, slipping his tongue into the other boy’s mouth as Minghao couldn’t help but moan into it. He had been waiting for this for a long time, just like the blond said. It annoyed him a little that they could have been having this for a long time now, but then Junhui closed the distance some more with their bodies touching and all thoughts flew out of his head.
He pulled away after a while to catch a breath and also to say, “as much as standing is alright, there’s a comfortable bed right there.”
Junhui laughed as he nodded, taking Minghao’s hand and easily lacing their fingers together as he dragged them to the bed.
“Aren’t you glad we’re not drunk and shitfaced right now? We can actually enjoy the moment.”
“Whatever,” Minghao rolled his eyes as they positioned themselves in a way that he was sitting on the bed against the headrest, with Junhui easily straddling him with those long, long legs of his. He was still in beach shorts that rode up his thigh to an extent that it looked practically useless. It will be soon, that’s for sure. “Less talking, more kissing.”
“Just kissing?”
Minghao groaned as a reply just as Junhui leaned in with more intent. This time they skipped all the formalities and went straight for making out like their lives depended on it, allowed themselves to act like horny schoolboys all over again; which, technically, they kind of still are. It didn’t take long before Junhui’s hips began to move down to grind on the other boy, eliciting another strangled moan from the brunet, hips jerking upwards to follow the movement.
He almost forgot Junhui was a dancer. Fuck those hip rolls.
As if knowing what he was thinking, Junhui smirked into the kiss and merely rolled his hips more violently, both of them moaning as the friction gave shocks of pleasure.
“Keep that up and I’ll ruin my underwear,” Minghao complained with no real malice. “I just changed them when I took that bath, too.”
Junhui smiled, “well, maybe we should get you out of those instead.”
“What?”
As if to answer, Junhui climbed off of the other boy—which was a shame, he really was giving quite a show up there. Minghao was about to complain until the blond shifted his position so that he was lower on the bed, just at hip level, and oh, that’s what he meant.
Junhui wasted no time pulling down Minghao’s shorts and underwear, allowing his erection to spring out, already hard.
“Are we really—You can’t be—“ The brunet began to stutter out frantically as he felt blood rush both up to his cheeks and down between his legs, where Junhui was already positioned. The idea of this finally happening was becoming a little bit too much to take, but he wasn’t going to just stop it. He still needed time to breathe, though. “Are you sure?”
As if to answer, Junhui tentatively licked a short stripe down the shaft, before taking the head in and going down in a matter of seconds.
Minghao did his best to keep his hips from bucking upward too much as the other boy gave him what was easily the best blowjob of his life, filling the room with wet noises and the sounds of his own breathy moans. He’s had his fair share of random hookups before, and he knows Junhui has had the same, but he never knew the other boy was this skilled at it. Junhui seemed to know just what to do with his mouth, hollowing and exerting pressure at just the right moments.
Just the sight of Junhui, golden skin gleaming with a sheen of sweat, rosy-cheeked and flushed was enough to drive Minghao mad. Similar to the night before, Junhui’s name left his lips in quick, soft whispers in between the moaning he did, which seemed to please the blond. Paired with those soft lips around his cock and the occasional hand he used to help cover more of the length, and he was powerless. He reached a shaking hand out towards the other boy.
“H-hey, I’m gonna finish soon.”
Junhui bobbed his head down one last time before pulling away, “I can take it.”
“No,” Minghao shook his head. “Climb up a little. I want to help you out, too.”
“Well, if you insist on being generous,” the blond joked, but followed, excitement obvious in his eyes along with a hint of affection behind all the lust. After a moment of pause, he took his shirt off, chucking it somewhere onto the floor. Next, he pulled his remaining clothing down just enough, releasing his own leaking erection as he moved to line their bodies together. Immediately, Minghao took hold of the other boy’s length and began to pump in such a way that he covered both the head and the entirety of it just right.
Pausing a moment to shudder at the new sensation, it took a while before Junhui began to do the same for Minghao, leaning in so that their mouths were connected again in a frantic kiss. It didn’t take too long before the two were shaking from the pleasure that coursed through their body, spilling their load over each other’s hands and bodies; well, for the brunet, it was on his shirt. He should have taken that off. After the high died down, Minghao examined the bed, which was miraculously void of any fluid.
He wouldn’t know how to explain things to Chan, although he bet the other boy would know, anyway.
They’ll never hear the end of it, if that were the case.
Junhui was still panting as he leaned forward to plant a kiss on Minghao’s cheek, before rolling over carefully, so that he was on his back. His chest rose and fell almost too exaggeratedly, but Minghao knew how he felt. The latter decided to take the time to wipe his hand on his already soiled shirt before taking it off slowly. Once off, he handed it to Junhui, who took it gratefully and began to wipe himself clean as well before things got too sticky.
After that, the shirt found its place on the ground as well, as Minghao sank onto the bed. He was finally beginning to catch his breath when Junhui tugged at his arm, making the boy face his way. Apparently having rest enough, Junhui was back to attempting to kiss Minghao again, which was easily allowed. It was a lazier one, though, something to cap off the night’s events. The brunet couldn’t help but trail his kisses down lower a little, reaching Junhui’s neck and nibbling at a small spot.
“It’ll leave a mark,” Junhui said in between breaths.
“That’s the point.”
Minghao gave the spot a small kiss before pulling away, satisfied.
The two lay on the bed in a moment of silence after that, hands finding a way to entangle between them. Minghao knew that, once he was able to think straight again, he would have just about a dozen questions ready to ask the other boy and probably a million more after that, just to be sure of things. Although to be fair, Junhui definitely had his own share of concerns as well. They would talk eventually, of course, it wasn’t something they’d leave ignored.
Still, all his questions and apprehensions didn’t matter that night. Minghao already had a few of those questions answered, anyway. For one, yes, Junhui was his even without a formal announcement. That much was pretty clear. They had, well, something between them—something that was always there to begin with, really, if they had stopped to actually allow what was happening to finally happen.
He closed his eyes, allowing sleep to come over him. Junhui was already asleep beside him. Their hands were still locked together, which was all that mattered that night.
The next day, Minghao once again woke up to sunlight shining through his side of the room. He wasn’t surprised to find out that their hands managed to let go of each other as the night wore on, with Junhui now facing the other side of the bed. It took Minghao a few minutes to fully wake up and leave the bed, as he found himself replaying last night’s events instead. He had morning wood that he decided to ignore in favour of waking the other boy up.
“Hey,” Minghao said, shaking Junhui’s shoulder. “Hey, Wen Junhui, get up.”
The blond groaned, rolling over as his eyes fluttered open. He took one look at Minghao through still-sleepy eyes before a bright smile appeared on his face; Minghao thought it was brighter than the sun that was just in his eyes a few moments ago. He would blame that smile along with the fact that he just woke up for what happened next.
“I love you,” Minghao blurted out, unable to stop himself. He clamped his mouth shut immediately after, as panic slowly began to seep in, but never truly forming as Junhui giggled.
“I know,” the other boy replied, smile in place. “I love you, too.”
“This is so cheesy,” the brunet mumbled, aware he was blushing regardless as he let his head fall onto the pillow, right next to Junhui’s. He could still hear and feel the other boy’s laughter, which got louder by the second, and he couldn’t help but smile himself despite being hidden by the pillow. He was, put simply, happy. Really, really, fucking happy. The moment would have been perfect if it weren’t for the sudden knocking on their door.
Minghao lifted his head and sighed, “if we pretend we’re dead, maybe he’ll go away.”
“I know you’re awake, Minghao,” came Soonyoung’s voice from the other side of the door instead. “I don’t care if you guys are tired from whatever sexy shit you did last night. My head hurts. Chan’s still half dead. We need help.”
“Sexy shit?” Junhui repeated with a small grin. “I wonder how he knows.”
“Fucking psychic,” Minghao complained, already finding himself climbing out of the bed to get ready regardless. What surprised him next was how Junhui followed suit, sitting up and stretching a little as he did so. He followed Minghao into the bathroom as if it was no big deal, and maybe it wasn’t after all. He still looked sleepy and adorable and Minghao couldn’t help but smile at the sight.
He wasn't sure when it started, for himself and for the other boy, but he’ll figure that out eventually. Or never at all. One day, he was just suddenly aware that he may have been attracted to his best friend. Honestly, who wasn't at least a little bit attracted to Wen Junhui? At least by some miracle, Junhui was attracted to him, too. An attraction that grew, slowly, into something more. Whatever they had, whatever he felt. Love?
He took one look at Junhui attempt to wrestle with the toothpaste.
Yes. Definitely.