Chapter Text
Jeno truly did enjoy the time he spent with Jaemin in the dance studio and he was extremely excited to introduce Hyuck to Jaemin as well, Hyuck was almost his partner in crime, best friend and mortal enemy all rolled into one. So to say he was confused when Jaemin left the studio so abruptly after Donghyuck arrived was an understatement. He didn’t even get chance to introduce Donghyuck to Jaemin properly before the latter boy left and quite honestly, he was pretty pouty about it all.
“Yah, Lee Jeno? Did you at least tell pretty boy that I was your best friend and not your boyfriend?” Donghyuck’s voice cut across Jeno’s intruding thoughts as he stared at the door Jaemin just walked out of. Jeno wasn’t stupid, of course he told Jaemin that Hyuck was his best friend. However part of him was unconvinced. Did I tell Jaemin? I must’ve done right? Jeno thought to himself, pulling out his phone to check the texts he sent to Jaemin. A look of horror dawned upon as his face as he scrolled through the texts, realising that he had never specified that Donghyuck was just a friend and nothing more.
“Oh Jeno, you’re such a dumbass why didn’t you tell him?” Donghyuck sighed at him. Jeno startled not realising that Hyuck was leaning over his shoulder reading the texts. Jeno really didn’t have an answer to Hyuck’s question if he was honest, a million things running through his head all leading back to the same point. Why didn’t I tell Jaemin? He thought, aimlessly scrolling through the texts again and again, hoping to be proven wrong.
“I….. thought I was flirting with pretty obviously Hyuck….” Jeno finally managed to stutter out, locking his phone and turning to face the boy. Donghyuck was giving him such an exasperated look, rolling his eyes once he made eye contact with the other. Jeno quickly looked away, not wanting to feel the heat of Hyuck’s look burning his face.
“Well you should’ve flirted harder with him” came Donghyuck’s haughty reply and Jeno knew that he didn’t even have to look at Hyuck to know that he was being overly dramatic. Before he could land a retort on him, the studio door burst open and Jeno snapped his head up, a look of hopefulness in his eyes.
“Yo hyung, what did you do to make Jaemin cry? Kiss him?” Jisung loped into the studio, dance kit adorned and a slight frown upon his face. Jeno was a little disappointed in the fact that it wasn’t Jaemin returning, but then Jaemin did say he was leaving. Wait.
“Jaemin’s crying?!” Jeno exclaimed, eyes darting between Hyuck and Jisung frantically. Did he make Jaemin cry. Fuck. Before waiting for a response from either of his friends, Jeno ran towards the studio door and burst through it, leaving behind the shouts of his two friends. He didn’t have to look hard or far to find Jaemin, as the other boy had just left the changing rooms with one of his friends. Jeno recognised this boy from the other day when he met Jaemin after school, and he was shocked to see his arm slung around Jaemin’s shoulders almost protectively. What really shocked him was seeing said boy press a small kiss onto Jaemin’s temple as they walked towards another dance studio, obviously going to class. Jeno was frozen in his place. Not once did Jaemin mention his friends and how close they seem to be, and he didn’t know how to react. Was this boy more than just a friend? Jeno wasn’t sure, but the two of them looked so… good together and the boy seemed to be extremely close to Jaemin. And the fact that Jaemin hadn’t recoiled from the affection either pointed, in Jeno’s view, that maybe they were a lot closer than Jeno originally thought. He watched as the two boys walked into the studio, followed only momentarily by Jaemin’s other friend. Jeno didn’t notice his two friends coming up behind him until he felt someone tug on his hand.
“Come on Jeno,” Hyuck whispered in his ear “you should leave, let’s go home”. Donghyuck’s hand slipped into his more comfortably and tugged him away towards the exit of the studio. Though Jeno couldn’t see, his eyes too hazed over with mixed emotions, Donghyuck shot Jisung an apologetic look and Jisung waved it off, knowing that the other was way more adept at dealing with Jeno than he was (besides, he had dance class and he didn’t want to miss out especially if he could get closer to Jaemin though he highly suspected that Renjun and Mark would shoo him away as he was friends with Jeno). Jeno let himself be pulled out of the dance studio by Donghyuck, head clouded with thoughts mainly consisting of Jaemin. It wasn’t until Hyuck thrust his helmet into his arms and told him to drive anywhere that Jeno let himself sort through his thoughts, Hyuck’s arms around his waist served him comfort but the spine tingling sensation he had when Jaemin rode with him. As Jeno weaved through back alleys and streets, his mind began to sort through the emotions he felt around a certain brown haired boy.
First of all, seeing Jaemin looking all sad awoke some kind of protection in him and what kind of broke Jeno was knowing that he probably was the cause of Jaemin’s sadness. Second, Jaemin’s friend pressing a kiss to the boy’s temple made Jeno inexplicably…angry? No, not angry. Jealous perhaps? Jeno thought about all the times he was close enough to Jaemin to think about pressing a kiss to the boy’s lips, forehead, cheek and groaned out loud. Maybe he just didn’t get the picture, Jeno’s thoughts took him, or maybe he didn’t react the way you wanted him to because he’s dating someone else. He promptly pulled to a stop on the side of road and Donghyuck’s arms tightened around his middle as he abruptly stopped the bike. Jeno sighed and took his helmet off, mussing his hair up as he felt Donghyuck slide off the seat and stand next to him.
“So… you wanna talk about it?” Donghyuck asked him.
“Hyuck… I have a crush on him. Like really badly” he replied earnestly, staring straight in front of him not wanting to meet Donghyuck’s gaze.
“Tell me something new” came Donghyuck’s sarcastic reply. Jeno fought the urge to roll his eyes and before he knew it, his thoughts came tumbling out of his mouth in a cascade and he was powerless against it.
“Well… I saw his friend kiss his temple and I was just so overwhelmed because what if he has a boyfriend and is just playing along nicely so not to hurt my feelings? Or what if he knows I’m flirting with him and is laughing about me to his boyfriend because some fuck boy is flirting with me. What if-“ Jeno was cut off by Donghyuck placing a finger against his lips and he turned to face the other boy, who’s lips were struggling against a smile.
“Jeno… you just need to speak to him properly about this sort of stuff so you’re on the same page. Also, even though you present yourself with this image, don’t let it define you. You’re so much more than just that, you’re my best friend and I love you so much never forget that”. Whatever Jeno was expecting, it certainly wasn’t that. Normally Donghyuck would give him some extremely stupid answers or not deigning him with any sort of reply. Before Jeno could reply, Donghyuck stepped towards him and pulled him into a hug, letting Jeno breathe in the scent from his sweater.
“Now, drive me home because I have homework due in tomorrow asshat” aaaaand the Donghyuck he knew was back again. Jeno grinned up at him half heartedly, feeling somewhat lighter than he had done a few minutes before as he jammed his helmet back onto his head kicking the life back into his bike. Before long, Jeno had pulled up on the path beside Donghyuck’s apartment building and the other boy had slid off the bike, storing the helmet away without prompting. Jeno waved at the Donghyuck’s retreating back as he ran up to the door and he laughed as Donghyuck pressed the buzzer sheepishly, knowing that he had forgotten his keys. Jeno waited for someone to let him in before driving off, wanting to see Donghyuck get in safely. He watched as Donghyuck’s mother opened the door for him, smacking the back of his lightly and Jeno couldn’t help but laugh, though his thoughts travelled to his own mother who never seemed to have the time of day for him. Sighing, Jeno kicked his bike into action and slowly pulled away from Donghyuck’s place weaving through the increasingly worn down buildings and potholes that littered the streets. The council never really bothered to patch up or fix up this area that Jeno lived in, though it wasn’t like any of the residents were surprised or even cared. Many of them were just happy to have a roof over the heads no matter how water leaked through, or the electricity turned off for hours at a time. They weren’t in a position to complain as the officials just dismissed them anyway with empty promises, instead turning their attention to giving money to build new luxury homes rather than accommodate the struggling families that lived in degrading cookie-cutter apartments on the opposite end of the district. It was one of these run down apartment blocks that Jeno pulled up behind to park his bike behind some secluded bushes (you could never be too careful in this area) before walking towards the front door of the building. Jeno pushed it open ever so gently, as not to cause any more damage to the rotting hinges and began to climb the rickety stairs up to his “home”. Jeno’s hand cautiously ran across the decaying wooden bannister as he slowly trudged up the stairs, feet knowing which steps to miss like it was second nature. As he climbed the stairs, Jeno said a small prayer to himself hoping that no one was home and he could lock himself in his room. As he reached the door of his apartment, he let out a sigh and pushed open the door, no need for a key, and the smell of cigarettes and stale alcohol obstructed his sense. His nose crinkled up against the smell as he shut the door quietly and shuffled off his shoes, leaving them by the front door. Despite being such a run down area, Jeno’s parents managed to somehow acquire a two bedroom flat, albeit a tiny one, meaning that Jeno had a room all to himself rather than sleeping on the sofa in the main area which he knew many of the children living near him had to do. Stepping into the flat, Jeno glanced around anxiously looking for any sign of life. It seemed pretty quiet. Great, he thought, I can live in peace one more day. Jeno hadn’t seen his father in a few days and he hoped it stayed that way as he couldn’t think of anything that could make his day worse unless his father turned up. Deciding that the coast was clear, Jeno made a beeline for his room when a voice made him stop in his tracks and cringe at the raspy nature of it.
“So, care to tell me why you weren’t home straight after school? Or would you like me to tell you?” Jeno turned around and saw his father rise from the sofa facing away from him, a glass of alcohol decorating his hand. Good moment gone, Jeno grimaced.
“I was doing stuff” he shrugged, wanting the conversation to be over and not wanting the confrontation that so often plagued his relationship with his father.
“No, you skipped school again. As your lovely teacher informed me, you haven’t been in school for 3 weeks now. Tell me right now where you were and maybe you won’t get hurt” his father eyes flashed dangerously and Jeno snapped, not caring about what danger he could be in whilst his father was suddenly acting like a caring parent.
“Why do you even care? You’ve not even been here for days and then you turn up reeking of alcohol! The days you are here you’re either passed out drunk or invited your friends round, drinking, drugs and I swear you even brought the local bar girls round! Why are you acting now like some heroic dad when you’ve been deadbeat my entire life!” he shouted, fists clenched at his side as he panted heavily. Well, this will probably end in disaster Jeno thought, but quite frankly he couldn’t care. He was sick of this house, his parents, of everything.
“No wonder you get into fights you little asshole. You wouldn’t even own that goddamn precious bike of yours if not for me! I work my ass off everyday to provide for you and your godforsaken mother just for the two of you to spend it on useless things” his father yelled back and Jeno noticed the grip on the glass tighten ever so slightly, almost as if his father was going to break it in his own hands.
“More like you don’t give us anything and you pay women to keep you company whilst your wife is out working 4 different jobs” Jeno muttered under his breath bitterly. He really hated the way his father treated his mother. Whilst his mother wasn’t always there for him, too busy earning money for his father to spend lavishly on alcohol and god knows what else, she let him get away with skipping school and always had her arms open for a hug whenever she was home. Which was rarely, but you get the picture. Jeno was about to turn away from his father and into his room when out of the corner of his eye he saw his father raise his hand and throw something towards him. Jeno swiftly moved aside but not quick enough as shards of glass shattered and pierced the skin on his right cheek. Jeno just laughed as he raised a hand to his face, feeling the blood warm his fingers as he wiped at the cuts. He glanced up at his father who was seething with anger, redness adorning his face as he glared at Jeno with fierce eyes. His eyes caught Jeno’s and he began to move towards him, hand outstretched and Jeno knew he had to leave. He sidestepped into the kitchen area and exited the other side before his father could register the quick movements and ran out of the door, shoes barely hanging onto his feet as he rushed down the stairs and onto the streets. As he left he could hear his father screaming obscenities at him but he never caught them, for better or worse he’d probably heard them before anyway, his father wasn’t the most creative when it came to insults. Jeno didn’t know where his feet were taking him, as long as it was as far away as possible from that place he didn’t care. He didn’t even have the motivation to jump on his bike and ride away, deciding the cool breeze in his hair and on his face was more appealing. In fact, Jeno revelled in the stinging pain as the wind hit his fresh cuts and he was reminded all over again what a shitty father, shitty life, shitty home he came from and he let out a bitter laugh, causing the old lady he just passed to give him a funny look. He couldn’t care less though, too lost in angry thoughts as he wandered through the worn down streets and passed the local convenience store.
“Jeno?”
Jeno blinked slowly, taking in the figure that was standing in front of him.
“Taeyong-hyung?”
Without any further words, Taeyong’s hand wrapped around his wrist and pulled him along the streets that, as Jeno glanced around, began to look more and more familiar. Silently, he let Taeyong lead him to wherever he was going, not really in the mood for questions or conversation. Before he knew it, a few minutes later Jeno found himself being led into the dance studio he was at only a few hours before but being led through a door he’d never noticed before. Taeyong’s grip loosened slightly as he climbed the flight of stairs to what Jeno presumed was the older boys apartment. Weird, he thought, Taeyong-hyung lives above the studio? Taeyong unlocked the door and ushered Jeno towards the sofa as he shuffled into the kitchen, returning with a first aid kit in hand. Jeno allowed Taeyong to clean his cuts with an antiseptic wipe and hissed at the pain slightly as the alcohol passed over the raw, irritated skin. Taeyong didn’t say anything, instead pulled out a cream and gently smoothed it over the skin on his cheek, frowning as he did so.
“I won’t ask any questions, but please, stay the night?”
“Sure hyung”
Taeyong flashed him a sad smile, and pulled Jeno to his feet and ushered him into the bathroom, leaving him to stare at his own reflection in the mirror. His eyes racked over the state of his face, his blonde hair all messy, the bags under his eyes seemed to be an even darker shade of purple now and the new cuts on his face made him look, well, a little worse for wear. As Jeno observed the cuts, Taeyong walked into the bathroom with a bundle of clothes and a spare toothbrush sitting on the top. Jeno gave him a grateful smile which the elder returned, before leaving the room and shutting the door. Jeno sighed, stripping out of his dirty clothes and changing into the fresh ones. Luckily, him and Taeyong were of a similar size, which made Jeno chuckle as he was certain that Taeyong was at least 5 years older than him.
After a few minutes, Jeno left the bathroom holding his dirty clothes and found Taeyong sitting on the sofa which had since been piled with pillows and a duvet from somewhere, talking with someone on the phone. Taeyong glanced at him and motioned for him to hand the clothes over.
“Everything’s fine babe, I’ll see you soon okay?”
Babe? Jeno thought to himself as he walked over to Taeyong, since when was this hyung dating someone? He made a mental note to himself to tell Jisung the next time they see each other. Taeyong took the clothes from his hands and placed them on the coffee table.
“You look as if you need a good night’s sleep Jeno. I put some fresh sheets on my bed, so go sleep in there tonight” Taeyong smiled at him, pointing towards what Jeno presumed was his hyung’s bedroom.
“What?! Hyung, no I can’t do that! I’m a guest, I can’t take your bed! You have dance to teach tomorrow!” he protested, firmly planting himself on the sofa. However, Taeyong is a lot stronger than he looks and Jeno was surprised to find himself manhandled into the bedroom and was pushed onto the bed with a bewildered look towards Taeyong.
“Sleep well, Jeno-ah” his hyung said softly, placing a soft kiss on his forehead and smoothing his hair fondly. Jeno didn’t know how to react, opting to watch Taeyong retreat and turn the light off before leaving the room. He knew better than to argue with Taeyong, so Jeno slipped under the covers and shut his eyes, willing all thoughts of his father and all the events of today out of his head. He eventually fell asleep, mind blissfully empty even if a brown haired boy tried to creep back into it.