Chapter Text
Mingyu arrived just in time for Wonwoo to return the clipboard to the irate looking delivery guy. Wonwoo bowed as he made his way to the back of the truck to receive the boxes. Mingyu followed, his arms stretched in front of him. The box was dropped (gently, and it wasn’t as heavy was he was expecting, but it was still dropped) to his arms, surprising him. It surprised him even more when one of the delivery men that were there, unloaded another box on top of the first one.
Mingyu staggered, but he turned around before they could add another box. He knew he looked sturdy with his height and his built, but Seungcheol was going to kill him if he gets injured accidentally. He was terrifyingly clumsy.
He and Wonwoo walked back and forth twice from the truck to the counter, unloading the boxes. They weren’t at all that big, the biggest one reaching up to Mingyu’s knee. (That was the one box that needed them both. Mingyu was relieved at the same time, horrified. The box was placed between him and Wonwoo, not allowing them to glance at each other, but it did require them to practically hold hands.)
They dumped the last box near the counter. Wonwoo rushed back outside, bowing to the delivery man and signing off the delivery boxes. Mingyu felt a tap on his shoulder. He turned around and saw Seungkwan and Hansol, looking at him in question and expectation. He glanced back at Wonwoo, who checked if the delivery truck was gone. When the truck turned, Wonwoo nodded before walking back inside the library.
The three of them waited for Wonwoo to tell them what to do. Giving them a small smile, he wiped the sweat beginning to form on his brow. “I think it’ll be easier to get the books out of the boxes first,” he began, as Hansol removed the boxes on top of another to place on the ground. “Then we can segregate them by genre, then title. Putting them on the shelves will be easier.”
“Why do you have new book shipments when it’s a library?” Mingyu blurted out. Hansol, Seungkwan, and Wonwoo looked up at him from where they were crouching to open the boxes. Seungkwan sighed, shaking his head and pinching the bridge of his nose.
Wonwoo smiled, though, before returning to ripping the packaging tape off of the boxes. “These are literally new books. Some of them are titles readers requested for, while the rest are new works by famous authors.” He took a couple of books out of the box, placing them on top of the counter. He turned to receive the books Hansol and Seungkwan removed from the other boxes. “I like keeping the books up to date here.”
“Hyung donates the older ones to places where they can’t normally get books,” Seungkwan interrupted, grunting as he pulled a packaging tape off. Hansol caught him before he fell over.
“Why not sell, then?” Mingyu asked. Hansol, Seungkwan, and Wonwoo worked like a production line. Seungkwan handed Hansol the books from the boxes. Hansol stacked them by genre, handing them to Wonwoo. Wonwoo, finally, re-arranged them by title. There was a few moments of silence as the three of them worked, leaving Mingyu awkwardly standing near the windows.
“We do,” Wonwoo said, reading the spine of a book before adding placing it between two other books on the stack. Mingyu blinked. Wouldn’t it be a bookstore then?
“It’s both.” Hansol replied, smiling up to Mingyu as he passed another stack to Wonwoo to sort. Seungkwan stood, stretching his legs and back, trying to get the feeling of his limbs to return. All the boxes have been opened, and there were only a few more stacks left before they would be placed on the shelves.
“What,” Mingyu’s eyebrows furrowed. Hansol stood and stretched his own limbs. He and Seungkwan stood beside Wonwoo, who was about done with organizing the stacks. Seungkwan took the organized stacks and placed them on the pushcart.
“It’s like a DVD store, I guess,” Wonwoo said, pushing his round glasses up. Mingyu’s eyes widened at the adorable gesture. “You can rent the book, or buy the book.”
Wonwoo smiled at Mingyu, before turning at Hansol. “It kind of helps encourage people to buy it once they’ve read the book. And it’s a pretty quiet place where students can study.”
“Haven’t you been here long enough to know?” Seungkwan said, eyeing Mingyu from head to toe. Mingyu felt disturbingly naked and judged by Seungkwan’s elevator eyes. Hansol wrapped an arm around Seungkwan’s shoulders, turning him around to start placing the books on the shelves.
“It’s confusing,” Mingyu said honestly. He’s never seen a place like this before, besides a DVD store, like Wonwoo mentioned. Looking around the library though, Mingyu had to admit that it was a pain to buy a book without knowing if he was going to enjoy it or not. The policy was probably why Wonwoo entertained a lot of people on the counter.
(That, and Wonwoo was very distracting.)
Wonwoo tapped Mingyu’s shoulder, nodding in sympathy. “But it’s a good, quaint business.” Mingyu watched as Wonwoo took another look at the stacks, before double checking that those were all the boxes. “And I love being surrounded by books. It’s very relaxing.”
Mingyu’s eyes softened. There was a soft, satisfied smile on Wonwoo’s face as he stacked the rest of the books onto the cart. In the middle of the library, Mingyu heard Seungkwan and Hansol arguing. (Well, it was more of Seungkwan complaining and Hansol occasionally making affirmation sounds.)
Wonwoo turned to look at Mingyu as he finished placing the last stack of books onto the cart. His smile was gone, and he blinked at Mingyu who was still standing at the side. A soft pink flush colored his cheeks.
“If you’re bored, it’s okay if you leave. I know that books aren’t for everyone.” Wonwoo said, and without thinking, Mingyu took the handles of the cart, shaking his head with wide eyes.
“I’m fine! It’s just that, I never knew it was like this.”
“What were you doing half the time you were here, then?”
Mingyu bit the inside of his cheek, refraining from cursing and telling Wonwoo the truth. But he cursed Jeonghan at the back of his mind, blaming him for everything that’s happened so far. He and Wonwoo walked to the right shelf as Wonwoo kept a soft smile whenever he turned to the books.
“It feels nice,” Mingyu said, “being surrounded by books.”
While it wasn’t the truth, it wasn’t completely a lie either, and Mingyu nearly cried, thanking god that his brain to mouth filter was working. With the presence of Seungkwan and Hansol, it would have been weird to suddenly confess. (Okay, so regardless of their presence, it would still be weird, given that it was the second time they’ve fully interacted after greetings.)
Wonwoo’s smile grew, unconsciously holding the books closer to his chest. His nose scrunched in the middle. He chuckled. “I know, right?”
“Do you mind if we get coffee after?” Oh, well, nevermind about that brain to mouth filter. Mingyu inwardly cursed and flinched, his mouth tumbling the words out that he nearly bit his teeth in his rush.
Mingyu handed stacks of books robotically, as Wonwoo’s face turned blank. Mingyu panicked. Was it too soon? Too forward? Too awkward? He cursed Jeonghan again because it was his idea to do this in the first place!
Wonwoo glanced at him, a blink-and-you-miss-it glance from the corner of his eyes, before facing to fix the books on the shelves. He mindlessly pushed the books into their places silently, and Mingyu was sent into a deeper state of panic.
“As a thank you for yesterday, remember? I mean, you did do our groceries for us, you even paid for the coffee I was supposed to buy after. You left early, and I had to deal with my hyungs that I forgot you were in the line and that I was supposed to pay, and I thought you wouldn’t mind? Today? Or should I have asked you some other day? Maybe I should have. Jeonghan-hyung’s stupid, this was his idea in the first place, I don’t even know why I--”
“Will you be okay waiting for me, though?” Wonwoo cut of Mingyu’s rant as if he didn’t say anything at all. Mingyu’s head snapped up, eyes widening at Wonwoo’s question. Mingyu pushed the cart, eyes still wide and mouth open as he followed Wonwoo to the next shelf. “I mean, you don’t have to wait here? You could just… we could meet up at the coffee shop after.”
Wonwoo’s words were slow, careful. He wasn’t looking at Mingyu either. But there was the slightest pink tinge on his cheeks. Mingyu blinked.
“Oh.” Mingyu said, his brain processing Wonwoo’s concern. “I don’t mind. I can just read something until your shift ends.”
“Hyung has a shift?” Seungkwan asked, popping out from the other end of the shelf. Hansol shrugged at Wonwoo apologetically, mouthing that he tried, but they were finished and Seungkwan was impatient. “Who else is working here?”
Mingyu raised his brow in confusion. Wonwoo told him that his shift finished at four, and he assumed that meant someone else was working there too. But from Wonwoo and Seungkwan’s faces, that didn’t seem like the case.
Wonwoo sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose as he shoved the books into the shelf. “You know I close early twice a week, Seungkwan.”
“Apparently, he doesn’t.” Seungkwan said, pointing at Mingyu. Hansol pushed the finger down, looking at him with disapproval because pointing’s rude, Kwan. But Seungkwan doesn’t relent. “Hasn’t he been here for weeks, you’ve told us? How come he barely knows how things run here?”
“It’s not as if we talk everyday, Seungkwan,” Wonwoo’s voice was deep, deeper than Mingyu heard him speak. There was an underlying tone of something Mingyu can’t point out, but Seungkwan shrugged and pulled Hansol away to the front desk.
“Sorry,” Wonwoo whispered as he shoves the last book onto the right shelf. Mingyu nodded, pushing the cart back to the counter. “It’s a small library, and as you found out earlier, it’s also a bookstore but I run it myself. Seungkwan, Hansol, and Chan come over sometimes to help, but it’s mostly just me.”
Mingyu nodded, indicating that he was listening. Wonwoo sat behind the counter, softly glaring at Seungkwan where he sat with Hansol on one of the tables near the windows. “I close early twice a week since I have errands to run, and I keep the place open during the weekends too. But normally, I start at seven and end at around ten.”
Mingyu winced, the slightest movement of realization. He glanced at the clock hanging overhead Wonwoo’s seat. 9:03 , it read. He still had more than twelve hours to go if he was going to stay. His brain rattled at the things he needed to do.
He expected to wait a while, since he’s been watching (stalking, as Jihoon liked to remind him) Wonwoo work. He just didn’t expect it to be that long.
It showed in his face though, because Wonwoo sighed. “You can come back some other time, if you want. I won’t hold it against you.”
Mingyu’s head snapped up and his eyes widened, blinking in surprise. He shook his head. “It’s fine. I can wait. I’ll wait!”
Wonwoo’s eyes widened too, at the sudden outburst. But before he could say anything else, Mingyu waved a hand at him and walked through the shelves. “I’ll just choose a book. I read slow, I’m sure I can handle it!” He said loudly, causing Wonwoo to chuckle.
Seungkwan and Hansol watched, their heads close together in a huddle from where they sat. Their eyes flitted from Wonwoo to Mingyu, back to Wonwoo but they kept silent.
“This is a library, asshole. Quiet down.” Wonwoo said, walking to the door to flip the sign to say that they were open.
Seungkwan and Hansol looked at each other from the corners of their eyes before glancing back at Wonwoo. There was a soft smile on his usually stoic face. It was odd that Wonwoo looked that fond towards someone he’s only barely spoken to. Seungkwan’s eyes caught Hansol’s again, as they silently watched what was happening.
Mingyu appeared from the shelves, a stack of books resting on his arm as his other hand reached the back of his neck, looking embarrassed. The corner of Wonwoo’s lips twitched, and he waved a dismissive hand at Mingyu, who took a seat on the table behind Seungkwan and Hansol.
“I told you he’s getting that date.” Seungkwan hissed. Hansol just rolled his eyes.
“I’m still not going to be the one to tell Hao-hyung, Kwan.” He stood, making his way to the comic books section to waste time before he worked his shift at the coffee shop.
“If the giant puppy’s willing to wait, you won’t have to.” Seungkwan whispered, watching Wonwoo and Mingyu even when Hansol was gone.
He was sure he wanted to read the book. The cover captured his eye, and when he read the summary, it was interesting. It was action filled, with a cloud of mystery that would get any read hooked just by reading the first chapter.
So he wasn’t sure how he woke up to a soft hand on his shoulder, nudging him to awake.
Mingyu blinked, his neck stiff from the position he was in. His arms tingled from the lack of blood flow and it hurt to move. Wonwoo took the seat in front of him, leaning onto the table with his elbow lying down, while his other hand took his chin. There was a teasing smile on his face, but Mingyu felt too embarrassed and stiff to comment on it.
“It’s around two in the afternoon,” Wonwoo said, causing Mingyu to snap up, his bones cracking at the sudden movement. Wonwoo had the audacity to look sorry. “You’ve been sleeping for a while.”
Mingyu opened his mouth to say that it’s only been a few minutes, but his arms were still tingling, trying to get the feeling back into them, and there was dried drool at the corner of his lips. The stiffness of his neck protested, and his stomach growled loudly.
“Seungkwan and Hansol left two hours ago for their shift at the coffee shop.” Wonwoo said, and Mingyu stretched his neck to see the table in front of him was empty. “It’s slow during this time of day since lunch hour just finished.”
Mingyu’s stomach growled again, and he blushed. Wonwoo chuckled. “If we leave now, we can grab a quick bite before I have to handle customers again.”
Numbly, Mingyu nodded. Wonwoo stood, pushing his chair back closer to the table as Mingyu followed. He held his stomach, rubbing it soothe the clenching pain of hunger.
“Bad timing,” he hissed at it, trying to remember if he ate breakfast. What flashed in his memory was what Seungcheol always told him: he was always hungry. He grimaced as Wonwoo flipped the sign to ‘ sorry, we’re closed ’ and locking the door once they were outside.
“Come on,” Wonwoo said, nodding to a direction down the road. “There’s a small restaurant that gives me lots of portions, and it’s cheap too.” He looked down, carefully walking the steps. There was a small smile on his lips, and a soft, happy tune under his breath as they walked to the small restaurant.
It wasn’t far from where the library, and it was among rows of other stores. It wasn’t like the market that mixed with wet markets, bars, and restaurants that Mingyu was used to. It was just a row of stores and restaurants in an alley. Customers upon customers filing in and out of the restaurants, loud yells of ‘thank you for coming!’ heard from each restaurants. The customers who leave have a happy, satisfied smile and Mingyu was excited to feel the same way.
The excitement was cut short when he heard a group of people whispering and gasping. Wonwoo’s brows dip down his forehead as he walked to the crowd and noise. He and Mingyu were tall enough to not push their way through the middle.
The middle where three men in black suits ganged up on one in an unbuttoned collared shirt, as casual as it’s was going to get. But the one man used all three men as leverage, jumping over them before kicking and punching them. At one point, he took advantage of the choke hold, bending backwards to kick the man in front of him, and purposefully forcing his weight down on the one holding him. Wonwoo gasped at the sight, and Mingyu thought he wasn’t used to seeing it.
He tugged gently on Wonwoo’s wrist. Wonwoo stayed, his eyes narrowing further, and his brows dipping lower.
“And scram, you buttheads!” It wasn’t the manliest comment, nor did it sound like the manliest voice, but the three men in black suits cursed the one man they ganged up on with various bruises and blood on their faces. One of them had to hold his head up to stop his nose from bleeding. The man slapped his hands, as if dusting them free. The crowd began to disperse, and Mingyu tried to tug Wonwoo’s wrist again.
“Minghao!” Wonwoo yelled, causing Mingyu and the man to jump. The man in front, the flimsy looking man that Mingyu was sure he could break in half if he were serious (despite the display of strength previously), turned around with wide eyes.
Mingyu glanced at Wonwoo and he looked fuming. He never saw Wonwoo angry before and he prayed not to in the near future. The man, Minghao, stood still like a deer caught in headlights, as if he wasn’t fighting three oversized men not two minutes ago. Wonwoo stomped towards him, pushing at his jaw and raising his arms.
“How many times have I told you to call for backup when these things happen?” Wonwoo said angrily. Mingyu carefully made his way to them and saw that Wonwoo was inspecting the man-- Minghao --for injuries. “You’re not even in your uniform!”
Uniform?
Minghao pouted, yanking his wrist from Wonwoo’s hold. He rolled his eyes and pushed the unbuttoned shirt he was wearing to the side. There was a golden, gleaming badge hanging on his pants and Mingyu felt his blood freeze.
“I keep my badge here, hyung,” he said casually, stretching his jaw to make sure it wasn’t broken from the punching. “I showed it to them before they attacked.”
“What,” Wonwoo said exasperatedly, as if he knew that asking a question wouldn’t still change Minghao’s attitude, “did they even do?”
“Waltzed right in the restaurant and bothered everyone there. Couldn’t eat properly.”
“Minghao,” Wonwoo’s voice was laced with warning. Slim, slithering, and it sounded dangerous in Mingyu’s ears.
“And I might have hit one of them at the back of their head too hard…”
Wonwoo crossed his arms and clicked his tongue. All of a sudden, Minghao seemed like a younger boy than a man with a badge.
“They started it!” Minghao tried to defend. “I told them to shut up, they didn’t, so I hit one of them.”
Wonwoo raised his brow, and Minghao broke. “I might have also probably destroyed the table in doing so…”
Mingyu flinched, awed by Minghao’s strength. But also he could nearly see the flames surrounding Wonwoo’s whole figure.
But it disappeared after a heavy sigh. “Does Jisoo-hyung know?” Minghao winced and avoided looking at Wonwoo. It was answer enough.
It was silent after, Minghao still avoiding looking at Wonwoo, but Wonwoo felt too tired to scold Minghao properly (and it wasn’t really his place to do so, since he was just a librarian). Mingyu stood behind Wonwoo, shifting his weight from one foot to another, patiently waiting for Wonwoo to notice him again.
Alas, his stomach growled really loudly, that it was hard not to miss.
Wonwoo and Minghao looked at him. Mingyu blushed in embarrassment. He dipped his head in apology and rubbed his stomach.
“Sorry. Haven’t really eaten anything since this morning, so…”
“Who are you?” Minghao said, his voice curt and cold and very different when he spoke to Wonwoo.
Wonwoo grabbed a handful of Minghao’s hair from the back of his head and yanked. Minghao gasped, holding Wonwoo’s wrist from behind him. “Ah, hyung!” He whined.
“Be nice.” Wonwoo scolded, releasing his hold of Minghao’s hair. Minghao pouted, but glared when he saw Mingyu again. “Sorry, Mingyu. Got distracted. C’mon, let’s eat.”
Mingyu dumbly nodded his head. Before they could take a step further, Wonwoo turned around to face Minghao again with a hand on his hip and a finger pointing at him. Minghao froze, eyes wide. “Call Jisoo-hyung. Tell him this. And pay for the restaurant table you broke, Hao.”
“Hyung,” Minghao whined, following after Wonwoo and Mingyu, squeezing in between them. Mingyu stepped sidewards to avoid him. He witnessed Minghao fight, so he knew what he was capable of. It was better to avoid it than retaliate. (The fact that he was a cop fueled his need to avoid, too.) “Hyung!”
“Minghao,” Wonwoo said with his deep voice that told Mingyu he wasn’t messing around. “Please go back to the restaurant and pay for the table. Also, you don’t want to cause Jisoo-hyung trouble, do you?”
Minghao shook his head, looking more like a kicked puppy than a cop. Mingyu stepped back and wondered what exactly was the relationship between these two?
Minghao sighed and turned around to run back to the restaurant. He glared at Mingyu as he passed by. “Touch hyung inappropriately and I’ll kick your ass, got it?”
“Minghao!” Wonwoo yelled. Mingyu took another step back in surprise when Minghao went all up against his face. His eyes widened as he was caught off guard. Minghao narrowed his eyes further, nodding before running back to the restaurant.
Wonwoo grabbed Mingyu’s wrist and they walked a bit faster towards the restaurant. He rubbed his temple as they slowed down. “Sorry. He’s always been protective of all of us.”
Mingyu shrugged. “I know the feeling.” He remembered everyone in his family. They tended to be overprotective, despite the teasing.
“Well,” Wonwoo began as he lead Mingyu inside the restaurant they finally arrived to. “I hope you and Hao get along, though. He comes by the library often when he does his rounds.”
Mingyu froze in the archway of the entrance. Wonwoo stopped mid-step and turned, his eyes wide and his cheeks pink when he realized what he said. “I mean, you come by often too. And Minghao’s a long time friend. And I just thought, you know… just--”
Mingyu’s eyes softened as Wonwoo became flustered. He never saw that side of Wonwoo before, and it was refreshing to be the one witnessing it instead of being the one flustered. He smiled, his canine teeth showing. It made Wonwoo stop, but the blush on his cheeks was still evident.
“It’s okay. I like hanging out in the library.” Mingyu walked passed him, further inside the restaurant and winked.
He didn’t stop to look back, but he knew, by the way Wonwoo screamed. “Yah, I’m your hyung!” Wonwoo’s blush deepened.