Chapter Text
Everyone knows that there are 5 rules you always follow when dealing with Min Yoongi:
- Never wake him up when he’s having a nap
- Never enter Genius Lab without ringing the doorbell first
- Never interrupt him when he’s in the middle of composing
- Never make him do aegyo if it’s not already scripted
- Never make him dance if he doesn’t need to
The boys have realized that Seokjin keeps breaking all of them.
1. Never wake him up when he’s having a nap
Yoongi’s naps have become his defining trait at this point. The fans clearly find it endearing, because the infamous desire to be reincarnated as a rock is quoted back at them at least once at every fan meet, and Suga just smiles - disarmingly bright, gummy, the corner of his eyes wrinkling in mirth - at the fan who asks about it and says he’s only trying to give himself some rest.
Which is not far from the truth at all - the six of them know the only reason why Yoongi naps so much throughout the day is because he stays up until daybreak in his studio, working on countless tracks, melodies, lyrics that have yet to see the light of day. He usually shuffles in just when Seokjin begins preparing breakfast to shower and take a power nap before they start their day. No one bothers to wake him up for breakfast, and Jimin always packs the leftovers into a box that Yoongi quietly chews in the car on the way to whatever the day has in store for them. Yoongi does so much for their music, and in return, they let him nap in their own little ways: Taehyung slipping on headphones so his game isn’t too loud; Namjoon slipping a pillow under Yoongi's head when he falls asleep on the couch so it won’t ache when he wakes up; Jungkook and Hoseok perched on either side when he sleeps sitting up just in case he tips over and falls; Jimin quietly moving Yoongi's phone to a nearby table when his arm is dangling over the couch so Yoongi won't drop it and shatter the screen; Seokjin tugging a blanket over him, making sure he stays warm.
Eventually, the new album rolls around, and Yoongi's naps get more and more frequent as his return time to the dorm begins to spill over into post-sunrise. Everyone’s a little on edge and dazed from endless practices, recordings, and discussions with Bang PD and the staff on the new directions they’re going to take, and no one really notices how the furrow between Seokjin’s brows gets increasingly deeper each time he catches Yoongi napping in a precarious position - half-dangling off the couch, slumped over at the dining table, leaning against a wall. The man is exhausted, biting back yawns even during tapings, and Namjoon's witnessed him sleeping mid-conversation too, just dozing off to the surprise of everyone else in the room. Honestly? Namjoon can understand, and he bites back his own yawn as Bang PD gently nudges him and tells him to take Yoongi home and get to bed.
So one day, when the six of them return from a (rare) afternoon out to find Yoongi leaning back in a chair half-tipping over, somehow still fast asleep, it jolts everyone out of their weeks-long stupor when Seokjin lets out an exasperated cry. He’s at the dining table in two steps, one hand bringing the chair down safely, the other one roughly shaking Yoongi awake and Namjoon feels panic flood his veins as Jimin gasps and grabs his arm. Waking up Yoongi from a nap usually leads to two things: swearing, and regret.
“Min Yoongi! Yoongi, Yoongi! Wake up, this isn’t healthy.” For a second the only sound is the gentle rustle of Seokjin’s fingers on Yoongi’s sweater, and then the five still hovering by the door hold their breath as Yoongi lets out a low growl, eyes creaking open to peer blearily up at Seokjin. Hoseok counts down silently in his head, as he sees the fog of sleep begin to clear in Yoongi’s eyes.
5 ... 4 ... 3 ... 2 ... 1.
Before Yoongi can even say a word, Seokjin yanks him out of the chair, bracing the shorter man against his chest, and Taehyung lets out a small strangled scream. Yoongi looks completely confused, eyes still a little unfocused, as Seokjin begins to push him towards the stairs, up to their bedroom. The room feels tight, like a string over-tuned, like a lit fuse waiting to explode. Yoongi still hasn’t said anything, and Jungkook is convinced it means the explosion later will be huge and they’re all going to end up in an awkward silence for a week, like children whose parents are in a fight.
“You’re going to get into your bed and go to sleep and you’re not going to set any alarms and you will not go out to the Lab tonight and you will get some rest for once or so help me I will speak to the managers and force you to get rid of your schedules for the week just so you stop falling asleep in the worst ways.” Seokjin has already pushed him up three steps when Yoongi whirls around, cheeks flushed red with sleep, finger in the air, and Jimin thinks this is how the world ends.
Yoongi jabs a finger in Seokjin’s chest, glaring down at the man - and then he mumbles something under his breath that none of the five can catch, and disappears up the steps, his feet dragging and slow until they hear the door close. The tension finally erupts, with Taehyung and Jimin letting out anguished howls of laughter as they collapse onto the floor in sheer confusion, and Jungkook standing there with his gaze flitting between his two hyungs on the floor, and Hoseok and Namjoon already bounding over to Seokjin who’s still standing at the foot of the stairs, one hand on the banister.
“Hyung! What - I can’t believe you did that. What happened to not waking him up? Didn’t you set that rule? Did yoongi-hyung swear at you?” Hoseok peers into Seokjin’s face, which to his surprise is neither tense nor drawn, but somehow looks serene and calm.
“Had to do it. He could have fallen and hurt himself.” Seokjin turns to face them, his face alit with bemusement and something else Namjoon can’t quite place.
“He said thank you.” No one knows what to say to that, and as the thrill of the moment passes they shuffle back into their own rooms to get ready for dinner. Seokjin refuses to go into his room until Yoongi emerges - I don’t want to disturb him! He sleeps so lightly and I have to prepare dinner anyway - so Namjoon lends him a sweater and lets him shower in his and Taehyung’s bathroom before dinner prep starts.
When Yoongi finally emerges in the middle of them stuffing their mouths with food, Jungkook lets out a breath he didn’t know he’d been holding at the sight of Yoongi’s refreshed face, eyes alit with clarity for the first time in a long while. Everyone resumes chatting after greeting him, going back to discussing the next day’s schedule. But Jungkook’s gaze lingers on Yoongi as he pads over in his slippers to where Seokjin is already scooping out a bowl of rice for him. They exchange more words that Jungkook cannot hear, and he can’t help but look at how Yoongi’s eyes keep drifting to Namjoon's sweater on Seokjin (a little too long, a little too tight around the shoulders), and how Seokjin keeps a hand on the younger man’s arm as he speaks.