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It all began one summer evening, under the watchful eyes of the stars and moon, the only witnesses to Jihoon’s complicated feelings.
He was at a party, celebrating finishing his first year in college and he was devastated. The music was great, the food was delicious and the people were awesome but Jihoon was just extremely sad for two reasons:
He was drunk and he was suffering from a non-existent love life.
Jihoon found himself on the balcony of whoever’s house the party was at, just staring at the night sky while contemplating why the universe was so cruel to him. He just wanted someone to love him and be loved in return. Was it too much to ask? Jihoon wasn’t born this way to have no love life at all. Even Woojin was dating someone.
Thinking about it almost brought tears to his eyes and he was close to sobbing when suddenly, someone rested their hand on his shoulder and asked if he was okay.
Not feeling like talking to anyone, Jihoon was ready to pulverize the creep for interrupting his alone time until he got a good look of the man’s face.
Jihoon’s breath was taken away. It was an angel sent down from heaven, the beauty personified, the one man whose face could actually cure cancer. Jihoon just stood there motionless while Mr. Perfect offered him a cup of water. Jihoon drank it without even checking if it was drugged which was a testament to the man’s character that it wasn’t. Jihoon probably would have done anything the man asked him to. He was that spellbound by the man’s perfect visage, and maybe a little too tipsy to rationalize properly.
“You probably should stop drinking. Did the water help?” Even the beautiful stranger’s voice was unique like honey dripping with all kinds of sweetness that made you want to trust in an instant.
Jihoon nodded dumbly when he realized he hadn’t responded to the man’s question and the concern eased somewhat on his beautiful face.
“That’s good. Are you with someone? Maybe I can bring you to them?”
I want to be with you, Jihoon was tempted to say but bit back the stupid thought and went willingly with the man back down to the living room where the party seemed to be dying down now. He was reluctant to part ways with Mr. Perfect but Jihoon didn’t want to give him the impression that he was a burden and a drunkard so Jihoon told him he saw his friends from afar and thanked him for his help.
The man then unleashed his secret weapon, a radiant smile that made you think world peace was actually possible and Jihoon was frozen stiff staring at him again. He was given a name before he was left alone to his own devices...
“...and that’s when I realized I was in love with Hwang Minhyun.” Jihoon ended with a sigh, a lovesick smile on his face.
“Oh god,” A voice groaned beside him, “can we just go through lunch without hearing your sappy origin love story for once! I’d like to actually have an appetite while eating, thanks.”
Jihoon glared at Woojin and folded his arms over his chest, “Well sorry that some of us can’t get a love life.”
Woojin rolled his eyes, “There are like literally dozens of people lining up for you. Just date one of them.”
“But they’re not Hwang Minhyun.”
“Then ask him out!”
“I’m not worthy.”
“Oh my god. ”
Daehwi interjected before the two could start a fight, “You guys need to finish eating, it’s almost class time.”
With the thought of food in mind, Jihoon and Woojin went back to scarfing down their meals and Jinyoung chuckled at how effectively their hyungs dropped an argument for food.
“Okay, but Woojin, I need you to meet me after your last class in the Wanna Hall.”
The younger male looked up with a frown, mouth still stuffed with food, “What? Why?”
Jihoon scowled at his lack of manners and waited for him to finish swallowing before replying, “I just need you there. You’ll see.”
“I have a test to study for so you’re going to have to be more convincing than that.”
Daehwi snorted, “When do you ever study for a test though, hyung?” Ignoring the glare sent his way, he smiled sweetly at Jinyoung beside him and offered him a treat from his lunch which effectively averted Woojin’s gaze.
Jihoon groaned and leaned his head on Woojin’s shoulder, fluttering his eyelashes at him while pouting, “Please. For me, Woojinnie.”
The male sent him a disgusted look and tried to dislodge him from his shoulder but Jihoon wrapped his arms around Woojin’s waist and locked him further against his friend. Finally Woojin gave up. He sighed in irritation, “Fine. This better be worth it.”
Jihoon released him with a cheer, smiling so bright his cheeks were almost exploding, “Don’t worry. When have I ever made you regret things I tell you to do? No, don’t answer.” He said when he saw Woojin opening his mouth.
Seeing that it was almost time for class, the four said their goodbyes and split up to their respective classes. Jihoon left grinning and almost skipping to his History class, already excited for what was to come later.
~o0o~
“No.”
“Yes!”
“No.”
“Yes! Please Woojin, you promised.” Jihoon said, pulling a reluctant Woojin inside the hall where other students in different years were milling about. No one took notice of them which was good because it was probably a sight to see Jihoon trying to bodily drag his friend inside while Woojin was holding onto the door for dear life.
“I promised you nothing! Why do you even want to join a Theatre Club? You’re literally already studying the course.” Woojin tried to reason out while still keeping his grip on the door.
“Because it’d be fun! And Daehwi and Jinyoung already signed up.” Jihoon panted, pulling with effort. Why the fuck was Woojin so strong? He just fucking dances.
“What?” Woojin said, surprised, “How the fuck did you get them to join?”
Jihoon gave up pulling momentarily to smirk arrogantly at his friend, “They didn’t know I was napping on Jinyoung’s couch when they came crashing into the dorm one night. Let’s just say I had my phone recorder open.”
Woojin’s face instantly scrunched up in understanding, “You monster.”
Jihoon shrugged, “But you love this monster, don’t you?” He was using his ‘cute’ voice again which never failed to get him what he wanted and Woojin, despite knowing him for ten years, was still not immune to it.
Woojin averted his gaze so he couldn’t look deep into those big, sparkling eyes and he caught sight of Minhyun and his friends sitting around the front rows of the hall instead. He snapped his eyes back to Jihoon, realization dawning on him.
“You just want to join because Minhyun hyung is here, right?”
Jihoon twiddled with his thumbs and smiled shyly up at Woojin’s unimpressed look, “He just so happened to be here too?”
“Yeah, okay I’m leaving.”
“Woojin, wait!” Jihoon whined, tugging again on Woojin’s arm and this time hugging it to his chest so the other couldn’t leave easily. As expected, Woojin stopped and scowled at Jihoon when he didn’t let go, “Please, you gotta stay here with me or else I won’t have the courage to do anything around him.”
Woojin sighed, “But why me?”
Jihoon looked up at him with shining eyes full of trust and hope, “Because you’re my best friend and I need you.”
There was a moment of silence when they just stared at each other, not doing or saying anything and Jihoon was ready to back off if Woojin really didn’t want to do this. He wasn’t going to force anyone (except Daehwi and Jinyoung) into joining the club for his quest for love but then Woojin’s features softened and his limbs slackened in Jihoon’s grip.
“Okay. I’ll do it.”
Jihoon was close to breaking into a grin.
“But on one condition.”
The older male was going to regret what he’d say next, “Anything. I’ll do it.”
Woojin smirked, “You do my laundry for the entire semester.”
~o0o~
After Jihoon reluctantly agreed to his brilliant deal, they seated themselves along one of the back rows of the hall, waiting for the assembly to begin.
“Oh, look!” Jihoon whispered into his ear, subtly pointing at the senior in the front, “He’s standing around his friends, Woojin!”
Woojin rolled his eyes, “I know what he looks like, Jihoon. You point him out almost everyday.”
Jihoon ignored his best friend’s indifference and continued shaking his shoulder, “Isn’t he looking super handsome today? Like even more handsome than yesterday?” Jihoon dreamily sighed, smiling when Minhyun’s unique laugh reached their ears.
Woojin repressed the urge to scoff in disgust and said, “Yah, do you know how lovesick you look right now?”
He watched as an embarrassed flush bloomed over Jihoon’s cheeks, “Shut up— oh! He’s coming this way! Do you think I should say hi?” Jihoon asked, worrying his bottom lip until they looked chap. Woojin answers for him by pinching him on the side so his friend was forced to stand up.
“Just go so my ears can rest from your fangirling,” Woojin grumbled and Jihoon huffed, doing as he said and went to hesitantly sidle up beside Minhyun. Woojin couldn’t bear to watch the painful exchange.
“Hey, has it started already?” Jinyoung suddenly appeared beside him with Daehwi in tow, having just come from their last class.
“No.” Woojin said shortly. They took their seats beside Woojin and Daehwi lifted a brow, “But obviously something’s happened. What is it?”
Woojin jerked his head in front of him, “The usual.” The younger two turned to look at Jihoon talking and laughing at whatever Minhyun was telling him and they both said in unison, “Oh.”
Daehwi sighed, “I pity you, hyung, I really do, but you made crap decisions back in high school and are facing the consequences of it now.”
“Excuse me?” Woojin almost growled, tearing his eyes away from Jihoon’s smile, “I had no chance at all. ”
“Please. You were too shy to confess despite me and Jinyoung already trying to help you and now it’s your second year of college and you’re still in love with him.”
“Shh.” Woojin insisted, leaning closer so they could whisper instead, “Could you pipe down? He’s just right there.”
“Hyung, I doubt he’s even paying attention to us. He’s too busy with a crush that he didn’t have in high school which you should have taken advantage of.” Daehwi emphasized his point by poking Woojin’s chest.
“It’s obvious he would have rejected me.”
Daehwi and Jinyoung exchanged disbelieving glances, “How the fuck would you know that?”
Woojin rolled his eyes, “I’m nowhere near Jihoon’s type. I look nothing like Minhyun hyung.”
Jinyoung snorted, “Definitely.”
Daehwi smacked Jinyoung’s thigh and ignored the other’s pained ouch, “What Jinyoung meant to say was that you both are uh...different kinds of good-looking men.”
Woojin just sent him a deadpanned look.
“And… you’re both from Busan?” Daehwi added with an uncertain smile.
The older of the two shook his head and sighed, “I rest my case. Jihoon would have never liked me the same way.”
“But you guys were inseparable in high school.” Jinyoung insisted, “I was almost sure Jihoon had a thing for you too back then— aack! Daehwi, stop slapping me!”
Daehwi glared at him, and Woojin ignored the two bickering in favor of looking for Jihoon. The smaller male was just heading back and he plopped down on the seat beside him again.
“How’d it go?” Woojin couldn’t help but ask but considering the flush on Jihoon’s cheeks, it probably went well.
“It was horrible! I made a fool of myself.” Jihoon lamented, slouching on Woojin and burying his face on his shoulder, “Why did I think I could be funny by cracking some lame joke?”
“Did he laugh?” Jinyoung asked.
“He did but I could tell it was out of pity. You’d know if he was genuinely laughing if he eyesmiled but he didn’t.” Jihoon pursed his lips together and Woojin just patted his head for comfort. The look Daehwi sent him practically screamed for him to do more but Woojin ignored it and settled for letting Jihoon lay against him.
“Alright! Let’s begin this general assembly.” A handsome man announced from the stage with a clap of his hands, “Can everyone hear me alright from all the way back there? Okay, hello my name is Ong Seongwoo, I am the president of this club and I’d like to take this opportunity to thank you for taking an interest in this club. We have big things coming up this year and I’m sure many of you are excited to start working on our play.” He grinned at the excited murmurings around the room. “We’re going to tell you right now that the play we’re staging this year is—”
“Snow White!” A jubilant voice cut through Seongwoo’s speech and a man began waving excitedly from the front row where the other officers of the club sat. “Hi, I’m Jaehwan, and I’m going to be the director for this play.” He smiled with all teeth and Seongwoo just rolled his eyes in amusement.
“Yeah, what he said.” The president then clapped his hands once more and grinned, “Alright then, let the auditions begin.”
“What?!”
“Huh??”
“Auditions already?!”
Jihoon jerked from Woojin, nearly scaring the life out of him because he thought the other had fallen asleep and somehow his arm had found itself wrapped around Jihoon’s waist. Apparently that wasn’t the case but if his friend was bothered by it, he didn’t show it. Instead he was sharing the surprise with everyone else in the room about the suddenness of the auditions.
“What! He can’t do that?! How am I supposed to get in the mood of the character? And they didn’t even say what the roles are! I can’t believe Minhyun hyung is letting some amateur director run the club like this?” Jihoon complained, hands clenched around his knees as they bounced in agitation.
Jaehwan, who had climbed up to the stage beside the President, tried to placate the students with his palms up, “Don’t worry, it’s not the kind of auditions where you need to prepare beforehand. We’re just a club, not some Julliard.” He snorted, and brought out a list of the people who had signed up today.
“So the officers will just ask you to do a few things, say some lines, do a few actions and that’s it. It’s really simple.” When Jaehwan said it, it set a lot of people on edge but when Minhyun got up as Vice President and placated the people with his sweet voice, it had the instant effect of assuring everyone.
Woojin could hear Jihoon sighing dumbly beside him and he bit back his own sigh of annoyance, watching instead the first people Jaehwan called on stage.
The auditions went by in a blur, the things people were told to do were surprisingly as simple as Jaehwan described it earlier. Yet Woojin felt his stomach twisting into a ball when his name was called and Jihoon squeezed his hand in assurance before he found himself climbing the stage.
“Okay, so Woojin-ssi. Hmmm.” Jaehwan said, contemplating him with a critical eye.
“Did you come here of your own free will?”
“Uh…” Woojin didn’t know if he should answer honestly or not and a quick glance towards the audience showed he shouldn’t. Jihoon was trying to give him the stink eye from many rows over. But the long pause was probably answer enough because Jaehwan continued.
“You look kinda mad. Don’t you think he looks angry too you?” Jaehwan asked Seongwoo beside him who nodded his head seriously.
“Yeah he has this aura about him that just seems like he’s mad at the world.”
“Well, you would be too if you had an exam and two papers due tomorrow.” Woojin grumbled when they continued talking as if he weren’t there.
“Yeah, definitely the angry type.” Jaehwan concluded in a hush tone to Seongwoo before addressing Woojin again, “Okaaaay, can you kick that prop over there?” He pointed to a small round thing on the stage and Woojin went over and did as asked, hands in his pockets as he did it.
Jaehwan clapped for some reason and thanked him for his hard work, implying he was done. Glad to be out of the spotlight, Woojin ran back to his seat and was greeted with a “congrats” from Daehwi.
Woojin scrunched his brow, “What for?”
“For nabbing the role of the dwarf.” He grinned cheekily when Woojin made a face.
“But I’m not that small? You and Jihoon are way shorter than me.”
“Hey, don’t say that.” Jihoon slapped him on the arm, his anxiety obvious with the way he was biting his nails. Woojin pulled his hand away from his mouth to make him stop. Jihoon continued without the obstruction, “I don’t want to be a dwarf. My course mates will never let me live it down if i get a minor role!”
“This is what you get when you wanted to join a club with Minhyun hyung in it.” Jinyoung sassed. Jihoon just gave him the middle finger and stood up when his name was called.
~o0o~
Jihoon fidgeted on the spot when he stood before the officers on stage. He tried not to meet Minhyun’s eyes, feeling bashful when they made eye contact the first time and Minhyun smiled at him. Jihoon was ready to combust on the spot.
“Alright, Jihoon-ssi,” Jihoon snapped from whatever daydream he was in and focused on what Jaehwan was telling him, “Please pretend to be dead.”
“What?”
“You heard me.” Jaehwan grinned slyly. “Come on a Theatre Arts student like you should find this easy.”
Jihoon’s brow twitched at the challenge and decided to throw all pride out the window and just act like he would normally do.
“Oh! I-I’m...dying.” Jihoon choked out, hand over his heart as he stumbled over the stage and released a pained sound. He was about to drop to his knees and continue weeping over his poor pitiful life when Jaehwan interrupted.
“Yeah, okay, no. You don’t need to speak. We just wanna see you lie there dead.”
Jihoon immediately stopped acting, “But how can you evaluate my skills with just that?” He complained, hands over his hips.
“Do you want a role or not?” Jaehwan lifted a brow to which Jihoon gritted his teeth and told himself not to explode in front of Minhyun who was still watching. He sighed and dropped dead as asked, falling on his knees first before dropping to his side, eyes open and mouth agape.
“Close your eyes.” Jaehwan ordered.
Jihoon did and felt stupid as he laid there while the officers murmured to each other.
“Now lay on your back.”
What the fuck were these instructions? I feel like a fish, Jihoon didn’t comment these thoughts aloud as he rolled on his back and waited for them to tell him they were done. With his eyes closed, he could sort of hear someone saying he had a nice profile and Jihoon wished it was from Minhyun.
“Okay, thank you for your hardwork, Jihoon-ssi.”
Jihoon didn’t even break a sweat. Grumbling under his breath about amateur directors, Jihoon left the stage and trudged back to where his friends were seated.
“You have dust in your hair.” Woojin reached out to slide his fingers through Jihoon’s hair and Jihoon let him while he moped over his weird audition.
“At least he just made you play dead. I had to prance around the stage like some lunatic.” Daehwi told him.
Jinyoung frowned, “He just made me stand there.”
“That’s cause you look handsome doing nothing, dear.”
“Thanks— wait, was that a compliment?”
While Jinyoung tried to figure that out, Jihoon was almost lulled to sleep by Woojin’s constant hair brushing and he asked, “Did you get it all out?”
“Uh…” The fingers paused and Jihoon almost whined in disappointment but stopped himself, “Yeah, they’re gone.”
“Thanks” Jihoon murmured and sat back properly on his seat. It was at that moment when Jaehwan stood up and clapped for everyone’s attention.
“Okay, thank you for coming for the auditions! It’s now time to announce the roles you’ll be acting for the play. Those who I do not call will be part of the production staff which is just as fun a job.”
Jihoon jerked forward in his seat, “What?”
Jaehwan must have heard his exclamation this time, “Is there a problem, Jihoon-ssi?”
“Isn’t that too early? Shouldn’t you think more carefully about this before announcing?”
“What do you think we are? College students who cut their classes and don’t do their thesis?” Jaehwan snorted. “We don’t have the time to think about this outside club activities so we made our decisions on the spot. Don’t worry you can trust our expert judgement.” He winked and Jihoon drew back in disgust.
Clearing his throat, Jaehwan began, “Alright so for the extras we’ve got…”
Jihoon tuned him out, grabbing his phone from his pocket and opening a gaming app.
“You’re gonna miss out your name if you don’t pay attention.” Woojin said.
“He’s calling out from the least important cast members to the most. Why should I listen?” Jihoon said and he wasn’t even being sassy about it. Woojin sighed and rolled his eyes.
Jaehwan continued on and on until, “And Prince Charming will be played by none other than our vice president, Hwang Minhyun!”
There was scattered applause. Jihoon actually placed his phone down to cheer until he realized something.
“Woojin, did Jaehwan call my name yet?”
“Oh, now you’re paying attention?” He smirked.
“And for our main lead—”
Jihoon shook Woojin’s shoulders, “This is not the time to be smart. Why hasn’t my name been called yet?! Does this mean they’re putting me as understudy?”
“Or the productions team.” Daehwi added.
“But I’m too good for the backstage stuff. What the fuck is Jaehwan hyung doing?!”
“Our beautiful Snow White, will be played—”
Jinyoung pointed to the stage, “Look, Jaehwan’s not even done yet.”
“He’s announcing Snow White.” Jihoon told him, sighing in annoyance.
Daehwi’s expression didn’t change, “So?”
“So? It’s obviously not me.”
“By none other than—”
“Then you just gotta be content being either an understudy or backstage staff then.” Daehwi shrugged, smiling unapologetically.
“Nooo!” Jihoon wailed, “How am I ever gonna get closer to Minhyun hyung like that? We’ll have different schedules and won’t be able to see each other daily. This is horrible. I should never have joined this stupid—!”
“Our very own pretty flower, Park Jihoon!”
Jihoon froze in his seat, unable to believe his ears, while Woojin burst out laughing from his seat.
~o0o~
Jihoon barged into the classroom the next morning. It was a good thing he and Jaehwan shared the same morning class so it was easy for Jihoon to confront the man.
“I want a new role.”
“Sorry we don’t do refunds,” was Jaehwan’s immediate reply, not even looking up from whatever paper he was doing. “Either you accept the role or go.”
“This is discrimination!” Jihoon exploded, getting to the point, “How could you only give me a different gender role?!”
“Uh excuse me?” A girl said sitting beside Jaehwan who was part of the club and got the role of Dopey.
Jihoon ignored her, “Why couldn’t you have picked someone, some girl more suitable for the role?”
Sighing, Jaehwan looked up, “No one was more beautiful than you.”
Jihool rolled his eyes, “I know that. But that doesn’t mean you couldn’t have just picked from a pool of girls there. Or if it has to be male, why not Daehwi? He fits the role better than I do.”
“We were also thinking of Daehwi but Minhyun said he didn’t want to kiss someone in a relationship so he suggested you instead.”
Wait what .
“Say that again?” Jihoon asked, sounding very interested.
Jaehwan noticed the look in his eyes and laughed to himself, “Oh? So now you’re interested when Minhyun hyung is involved.”
Jihoon reared back with a flush, “N-No. I’m just surprised he wanted me.”
“Well, of course. You actually know how to act than these amateur broadway lovers out there and you’re pretty to boot.”
“Can you stop calling me that.”
“What? Pretty? I thought you like compliments.” Jaehwan questioned with a furrowed brow.
“Yeah but not from you.” Jihoon jokingly said with a smirk and left the man dumbfounded. He got more than he needed anyway and he was still reeling from the knowledge that Minhyun wanted him of all people to kiss— uhh, to act as his love interest.
This was a love story in the making.
~o0o~
Jihoon waltzed into the dorm room while Woojin was busy destroying Jinyoung on his PS4. Jinyoung threw down the controllers after another loss and Woojin would have yelled at him if he weren’t distracted by the bright smile on Jihoon’s face.
“Someone’s happy?” Woojin raised a brow and Jihoon hummed merrily, almost skipping towards his bed before he flopped down on it.
“Did you get Jaehwan hyung to switch your role to something more masculine?” He said, grabbing his latte beside him and taking a sip from the straw.
“Even better,” Jihoon breathed, eyes sparkling like a million stars, “I get to kiss Hwang Minhyun.”
“What!?” Jinyoung shouted at the same time as Woojin choked, the liquid going down the wrong tube. He coughed uncontrollably, Jinyoung thumping him strongly on the back while Jihoon got up to fetch him some water.
“What the heck? Drink like a normal person, Park.” Jihoon reprimanded, his face stern although his eyes were soft.
“Wait a minute,” He weakly said after a minute of coughing, “What do you mean you’re kissing Minhyun?”
Jihoon seemed to remember why he walked in here happy and that goofy smile was back on his face. Suddenly Woojin was less inclined to look at it, “Because Jaehwan hyung opened my eyes to what acting as Snow White would mean.”
“So you’re really going to play as a girl?” Jinyoung interjected in surprise. Jihoon nodded, making the taller male grin teasingly, “Which means we get to see you in a dress, right hyung?”
Instantly, Jihoon’s smile turned upside down when he remembered why he disliked the role of Snow White, “Shit. I forgot about that.”
“It’s okay, you’re pretty enough to pull it off.” Woojin said after his throat was finally okay to speak.
Jihoon hit him on the shoulder. Woojin didn’t know if the redness on his cheeks were natural or from his words, “Shut up.”
Jinyoung agreed, “Yeah, hyung, just think about how much Minhyun hyung will like seeing you in a dress.”
“Uhm...I don’t think Minhyun hyung is into that.” Woojin tried to cut in but the contemplative look in Jihoon’s eyes meant he lost him already. He cast Jinyoung a look to which the other just shrugged innocently. He released a sigh and got up from the couch.
“Alright, it’s time for bed.” Woojin announced, not really one for sleeping in early but today just seemed like it.
“Oh no, you’re not.” Jihoon pushed him back down on the couch and sat with him so he was sandwiched in the middle, “We’re marathoning Snow White tonight.”
The younger two groaned and Jinyoung muttered something like, “I should have stayed with Daehwi instead.”
“What is even there to marathon? It’s only one movie.” Woojin asked, confused.
Jihoon stared at him as if he’d never seen him before, “You poor ignorant soul. You thought there was only one Snow White movie out there?” Jihoon laughed, already going through the movies in their TV to find it and Woojin sank deeper on the couch, ready for a night of Princesses and handsome Prince Charmings.
~o0o~
After a week of script reading and getting familiar with his character, Jihoon was ready to hit the stage and show them who the best Snow White was. It helped that he was constantly motivated by Mr. Perfect every time Jihoon had a scene with him (which was only twice but that was enough).
“Okay, Jihoon. Just think you’re running through a forest with scary trees trying to get at you.” Jaehwan spoke up from where he was seated below the stage.
Stretching his limbs, Jihoon nodded and with the lines memorized in his head, Jihoon decided to go full out on his performance.
He screamed, “No, get away! Help! I’m being attacked! Prince, help me! Prince Charming, where are you?”
“Cut! Cut! ” Jaehwan yelled, stopping Jihoon as he was about to trip over himself and bawl his eyes out more.
Jihoon straightened and propped his hand over his hips “What’s wrong now?”
He hummed, “I like the whole screeching and stumbling but you changed the lines a little.”
The younger male frowned, “I thought it was a nice addition.”
“Yes, but you can’t call for the prince when he won’t show up to save you. He’s like many scenes away.”
Jihoon pursed his lips, “So just let him appear in this scene to save me.”
Jaehwan rolled his eyes, “I’m not going to change the script, Jihoon.”
“Killjoy,” Jihoon muttered under his breath.
“Alright, again!” Jaehwan shouted, clapping his hands for the propsmen to get the trees back in place and Jihoon dragged his feet to where he started, disappointed. He did the scene more appropriately this time and once they finished, Jihoon sat backstage and waited for his turn again.
He nearly jumped in surprise when a hand settled on his shoulder, “Having fun?”
“Woojin! You scared me.”
Woojin chuckled, ruffling the mess of Jihoon’s hair, “I saw what you tried to do there. You’re not going to get Minhyun hyung to act with you if you force it.”
“It was worth a shot.” Jihoon shrugged. He turned to Woojin and grinned, “How’s being Grumpy?”
Woojin grunted, “Don’t even start. I had to do some fitting for costume and they thought of me kneeling throughout the play. Can you believe that?”
Jihoon chuckled, hiding his smile behind his hand, “Well it’s an improvement I can tell you.”
He was hit upside the head by Woojin, “Asshole.” Jihoon punched Woojin’s arm in return and Woojin pulled his hair and soon, they were mini wrestling backstage.
“Yah, yah!” Someone yelled over them and Daehwi came running in to separate the two, “It’s not the time to be flirting, you imbeciles.”
Woojin sputtered, face red, “Daehwi, what the fuck?”
The youngest of the three rolled his eyes, “You guys are impossible.”
“Jihoon! It’s time for your death scene.” Jaehwan called and Jihoon scrunched his face.
“It’s not a death scene. Geez, I’m only just going to sleep.” Jihoon grumbled then remembered what this scene also meant. He whispered almost in a daze, “And kiss Hwang Minhyun oh my god, I’m not ready.”
“Isn’t it the reason why you kept Snow White’s role?” Daehwi asked with a raised brow.
“Yes! But it didn’t hit me until now. What am I going to do?”
“What do you mean? All you have to do is lay there and let him kiss you.”
“Oh,” Jihoon replied, nodding his head slowly, “You’re right. I just have to let him kiss me. That’s… that’s easy.”
Woojin eyed him warily, “Are you sure you’re going to be alright?”
Jihoon shrugged, “Yeah, I mean it’s not like it’s my first kiss--”
“It is your first kiss.”
“Yes, I lied, how do you know everything about my love life, Woojin?” Jihoon asked sounding almost scandalized. Woojin just laughed.
“Because I'm your best friend, your roommate and the only person unfortunate enough to see the aftermath of your break ups.”
Jihoon opened and closed his mouth, looking like he wanted to say something but not knowing what to say.
“Jihoon! Hurry!”
“Shit, what am I gonna do?! I don’t know how to kiss someone.” Jihoon fidgeted with the ends of his shirt, looking nervous and darting his eyes towards the stage where Minhyun was waiting.
Daehwi took his hands and squeezed them, “Don’t worry, I doubt you’ll be doing the actual kiss scene yet.”
Jihoon nodded , trying to be reassured by the younger’s words, “You sure?”
“Just go! He’s waiting.” Daehwi pushed him out on stage and then turned to Woojin with a smile. The other had tilted his head away, not looking at the stage as if he were no longer interested in the conversation.
“I know what you’re trying to do.”
“What?” Woojin grumbled.
Daehwi sighed, “Avoiding the situation. Can’t you be honest for once and tell him how you feel?”
“You mean now? When he’s about to kiss Hwang Minhyun, his biggest crush.” Woojin gestured vaguely to the stage where Jihoon was laying on the ground and Minhyun was leaning over him. They weren’t kissing but it looked like it and Woojin darted his eyes away once again.
Daehwi replied, “Of course not. Find the right time and tell him.”
“It’s not that easy, Daehwi. Not everyone can just scream their love for someone while the object of their interest was standing behind them.”
For once, Daehwi looked flustered, “I was forced and you know it.”
“Right. Playing Truth and Dare wasn’t force.”
The younger male huffed, “Well whatever it’s not like you’ll confess to Jihoon that way.”
“Who’s confessing to Jihoon that way?”
The two whirled around to find Jinyoung walking over after finishing his scene on stage.
“Oh, you know. 2park.”
“The fuck is a 2park.” Woojin asked though he felt like he knew the answer already. The name was a huge giveaway.
Daehwi smirked, “Jinyoung and I are going to help you deal with your Jihoon feelings.”
“Do you really have to? It’s clearly not the right time with the way Jihoon’s all over Minhyun hyung now.”
“Shhh,” Daehwi grabbed him by the shoulders and stared at him determinedly, “You just have to be patient. Things will run their course eventually. You’ll see.”
Woojin narrowed his eyes at the aura of confidence the couple emitted, “You’re not planning on assassinating Minhyun, are you?”
“Yes, hyung, that’s exactly what a couple of college students are planning to do rather than get the units they need to graduate.”
Woojin grabbed a piece of material from the table he was leaning against and threw it at Jinyoung, friendship be damned. Woojin didn’t know why he bothered sticking with them when he had Jihoon around to be with but he guessed they served their purpose sometimes. Sometimes being not now when Woojin wasn’t in the mood to listen to their pep talks about his crush for Jihoon.
~o0o~
Jihoon sat up, his face beat red after having Minhyun so close to his face. Their lips didn’t brush but he sure felt his breath against his skin and wow did Jihoon want to self-combust right now. He didn’t know how Woojin did it. He’d seen him kiss his girlfriend before and it always left Jihoon feeling ill at the sight but the other did it like it was nothing.
“Oh, don’t stand up yet, Jihoon. Ong’s still got to do the scene with you as Minhyun’s understudy.”
Jihoon scrunched his nose at the name. He’s never heard that before, “Ong? Who’s Ong?”
Jaehwan grinned, “Ong Seongwoo of course! We introduced him during the first general assembly remember?”
Jihoon’s jaw nearly dropped. No way, he was going to get nearly kissed by two hotties of the school. Of course Jihoon preferred Minhyun but he knew a good looking man when he saw one and he just sat there and watched as Seongwoo bounded up the steps of the stage towards him.
He seemed happy and very handsome as usual and Jihoon returned his smile when he beamed at the younger male, “Don’t worry, Jihoonie. I probably won’t kiss you in the actual thing but on the off chance, I do,” He winked, “I’ll make it worth your while.”
And there went Jihoon’s impression of the man. But Seongwoo smiled again and Jihoon thought he was lucky to be cute.
So they did their scene and continued practice until it was late. Jihoon walked with Woojin to their dorm and complained about certain lines in the script that Jaehwan forced him to say even though he wanted to change them. Woojin had to remind him that he was acting like a girl and not a man.
“Hey Woojin,” Jihoon called out to him after lights out, just staring at the inky blackness of their dorm ceiling before his eyes adjusted to the dark.
“What?”
“Thanks.”
“For what?”
Jihoon shrugged and rolled to his side on the bed, “For being there for me when I need you.”
“Are you really going to get sappy at this hour, Jihoon?”
“Would it kill you to indulge me just once?”
He heard Woojin sigh across the room before he replied, “Fine. I’m glad I could have a friend like you too. Happy?”
Jihoon smiled against his pillow. Yeah, Woojin was the best friend he could ever ask for. And Minhyun was the guy he wished to capture his heart. It was best not to confuse the two. “Yeah, I am.”
They exchanged soft goodnights before Jihoon was lost in slumber and dreamt of wailing trees and evil laughs that sounded strangely like Daehwi.
~o0o~
Several weeks into the practice sessions, Jihoon wasn’t getting any closer to Minhyun. It seemed more like he was getting to know Seongwoo more rather than the man he was crushing on. It‘s just that every time he hung around Minhyun, it seemed to be “Seongwoo this” or “Seongwoo that” and Jihoon was this close to tuning him out on conversations every time Seongwoo was brought up.
It would have been more annoying if Jihoon hated Seongwoo but he didn’t. He was a nice guy who acted really well on stage. Sometimes Jihoon felt his own character falling for him despite knowing zilch about Ong Seongwoo (at least until Minhyun started bringing him up and now Jihoon knew the other man had a penchant for collecting seal plushies— cute) They were just really close friends anyway.
Which was why Jihoon decided to be bolder and asked Minhyun to go out with him. He wanted the other to see him more as a dongsaeng and a drink out with the man could be the ticket to his heart. Jihoon was almost confident.
jihoon: see you later, hyung!
minhyun: see you, jihoonie~
Jihoon smiled at the way Minhyun said his name and put his phone down in the meantime to pick the best outfit for this date.
“Okay, how do I look?” Jihoon asked his three friends who all came to (use his TV) support him. But upon seeing their unimpressed reactions, Jihoon frowned, “What’s wrong? Don’t I look cute?”
“And you’re so lucky that you are, hyung, or else you’d never have pulled off that hideous sweater.” Said Daehwi with a repulsed shudder.
Jinyoung commented, “Just wear all black and you’ll be fine.”
“So you want me to raid Woojin’s closet?”
Woojin looked up and scowled at the mention of his things being used, “You have your own black stuff.”
“Yeah but they’re hoodies and sweatpants, not the sexy things you’d wear in a bar.” Jihoon reasoned already rifling through Woojin’s clothes. He decided to keep his ripped jeans on and shrugged on one of Woojin’s more sophisticated dark button down shirts that felt nice against his skin. He tucked the ends inside his jeans then turned around to face his friends again.
“How bout this?”
This time Jihoon got the reactions he wanted because Daehwi’s jaw dropped, Jinyoung’s eyes widened and Woojin stayed impassive but Jihoon wondered if his cheeks had darkened slightly.
“Wow, that’s even better.” Jinyoung finally ended the silence with his compliment and Jihoon beamed at him.
“Ugh I’m almost pissed that you could look so good in something so simple,” Daehwi flapped his hands in his direction, “Just go!”
Jihoon turned to look at Woojin for any comments and was surprised when those dark eyes were already staring intently at him.
“Woojin?” Jihoon prompted, hesitant.
His friend raised his eyes until they locked with Jihoon’s before the other walked over and began fixing his fringe.
“You need to remember to fix your hair every time you change clothes, Jihoon.” Woojin slid his hands through his dark locks and Jihoon let him, ignoring how much he enjoyed it. He stepped back and Jihoon inspected himself in the mirror, feeling ready now.
“You know I’m just going to ruin your hard work later. I can't help messing up my bangs.” Jihoon said with a grin.
Woojin just pushed him towards the door, “At least you’ll look presentable for one moment in your life.”
“Hey! What does that supposed to-”
“Did you bring your wallet and phone?” Woojin cut in.
Jihoon rolled his eyes, “Yes, mom, I did.”
“Good.” Woojin smiled till his snaggletooth was on display, “Don't end up calling me for your drunk ass.”
“I wont! Bye Daehwi, bye Jinyoung.”
The two younger boys shouted their farewells as their interest landed back on the TV.
“What about me? I fixed your hair.” Woojin looked betrayed as if he thought Jihoon was really going to leave him without saying goodbye. Jihoon laughed, finding the expression cute and walked over to give his friend a quick hug.
“There now you’re more special because you get a goodbye hug.”
Woojin blinked before a dopey smile stretched across his face, “Thanks.”
Jihoon left with a warm feeling in his chest and a matching smile adorning his own features as well.
~o0o~
Jihoon met up with Minhyun in a small local bar just a few blocks from the dorms, the other male looking beautiful as always in his white button down shirt, rolled up at the sleeves and black slacks.
They sat near the bar, holding their own drinks as they chatted about anything and everything about their lives. Most of it was focused on their experience in Theatre and Jihoon loved seeing Minhyun’s eyes light up in mirth when he talked about previous plays he did as a freshman in the club.
Jihoon shared his own anecdotes, going on about how he was almost robbed the main lead in a school play but Woojin had given it up for Jihoon since he wasn’t much for acting anyway. They were in middle school then and Jihoon had been nervous to enter the clubroom back then since it was his first time trying it so Woojin ended up applying with him.
Minhyun smiled at the story, “Woojin’s getting good at his Grumpy character though.”
Jihoon snickered, remembering what Woojin did last practice that got the entire hall laughing, “Yeah, he’s great. But he’s more passionate in dancing. Theatre is just a fun hobby for him.”
“Because you always drag him with you. Did you get him to join this year as well?”
“Well…” Jihoon couldn't say that he'd asked Woojin to join so that he could provide support for his crush. But Minhyun understood from his long pause that he at least had a hand in getting Woojin to join.
“Woojin is a really good friend. He must love you very much.” Minhyun said as Jihoon raised his glass to sip. He almost spat it back out.
“L-Love?” Jihoon choked out.
“Yeah it reminds me of how Seongwoo had to bribe me to join the Theatre club but what he didn't realize was that I’d do anything for him, the idiot.” Minhyun shook his head fondly and seemed to not notice the inner turmoil going through Jihoon. The younger male felt as if his chest was being squeezed, tight and suffocating.
Jihoon forced out, “Woojin’s just a friend.”
Minhyun blinked, “Yeah but a special one, right? Your smile looks brighter when you talk about him.” There was a knowing look in the elder’s eyes and suddenly Jihoon wanted to drown himself in alcohol. He thought he was doing well driving those unwanted feelings away.
There was suddenly a phone ring and after checking who was calling, Minhyun excused himself to take it. Jihoon just nodded numbly and stared at the reflection of himself in the glass, seeing in himself what he so longed tried to eradicate after years of pining. He sighed and drank his alcohol in one shot, thumping the glass back on the table, feeling entirely despondent.
This should have been his chance to grow closer to Minhyun, not dredge up old feelings that Jihoon had long past accepted as unrequited.
Thankfully, Minhyun came back to their table to distract Jihoon from spiralling down through memory lane again. Though it wouldn’t be for long.
“I’m sorry, Jihoonie, but I have to go.”
Jihoon’s smile dropped, “What? Why?”
“Seongwoo.” Minhyun sighed in exasperation like he was used to his friend’s behavior, “Said he got himself in trouble and needs my help to get him out of it. I swear, he’s like a child sometimes that needs his hand to be held.”
“Oh.” Jihoon wasn’t surprised at all that it was Seongwoo hyung again. He forced himself to smile, “No, it’s alright. You can go, hyung.”
No, it’s not alright. I need you to distract me and now I’m going to be left alone. Jihoon let those thoughts go while he waved goodbye to Minhyun. He’d never seen the older male in a hurry before which just goes to show how much he cared for his friend more than he did Jihoon.
He laid his head on the table and sighed. He should have realized this would have failed from the start and accepted his status of being miserably alone for life. He could feel the thoughts he tried to banish away festering in his mind and Jihoon raised his eyes to find the unopened bottle of alcohol Minhyun left behind.
Well, it’s not like there was anyone Jihoon needed to impress in this bar anymore. He could get shit-faced drunk as much as he wanted to.
He opened the drink and drank right from the bottle.
~o0o~
Woojin groaned, rolling on his bed when his ringtone pierced through the quiet of the dorm. He sat up and answered it without looking at the caller ID.
“What the fuck do you want?” He asked, voice low and groggy. He was going to bash whoever it was that deigned to interrupt his beauty sleep.
“Woojinnieeeee !” Said a baby voice Woojin was very familiar with through the speakers, sounding a little drunk.
More awake now, Woojin got out of bed and said, “Jihoon? Are you drunk?”
“Nooo?” He answered like he didn’t know either. There was a slight pause before Jihoon laughed and Woojin sighed as he looked for a shirt to put on.
“Are you still in the bar with Minhyun?” When he mentioned the elder’s name, he didn’t expect for Jihoon to suddenly break down into sobs.
“He-he left me.”
“What?”
“He left me….for someone else, Woojin. Minhyun hyung doesn’t love me!” Jihoon wailed and Woojin had to put a few distance from his phone and his ear before Jihoon could ruin his hearing.
“Okay, I’m going to get you. Are you still in that bar?”
There was no answer. “Jihoon, you have to answer me yes or no, I can’t tell if you’re nodding or shaking your head.”
“Yeees.”
“Alright, just stay there.” Woojin ended the call and grabbed his car keys by the bedside table, ready to rescue his incredibly dumb best friend.
When Woojin arrived at the place, he quickly got inside and looked around for a head of brown hair. It would have been easier to find Jihoon if he had been wearing his neon clothes but Woojin still managed to find him seated at the back of the bar.
Jihoon’s head was tucked inside his folded arms and Woojin placed his hand on his shoulder. Jihoon immediately jerked away from him with a growled, “Touch me again and you’re gonna lose that hand, mister.”
Woojin chucked, “It’s me, stupid.”
Jihoon lifted his head slowly, “Wo-Woojin?” His voice broke and Woojin had a split second to realize what was going to happen before Jihoon threw himself at him, arms wrapped around his waist and head buried in his chest.
“Woojin!” Jihoon sobbed, staining the younger’s male shirt with his tears and Woojin sighed, petting the messy hair under him gently.
“Alright, shh, come on. Let’s sit down.” Woojin guided the smaller male on the bench and sat beside him when the other wouldn’t let go of him. He hoped Jihoon wouldn’t hear how loud his heart was beating against his chest with the way Jihoon was draped over him. He wasn’t used to it and his face was starting to grow red. But tonight wasn’t about him. It was about Jihoon.
“Hey, hey. It’s okay. He’s not worth it.” Woojin tried to console, brushing away his tears when Jihoon looked up at him.
“But I wanted him to like me. I wanted a love life, Woojinnie.” Jihoon whined, tearing himself from Woojin to grab at the bottle on the table.
“Woah! No. You’ve had enough.” Woojin snatched the drink away and placed it far away from Jihoon who was beating at his shoulder now to give it back to him. He ignored his tantrum and removed the rest of the shots on the table and asked a passing waiter for water.
“Why are you even here?!” Jihoon was saying, his hits lacking the usual power to bruise Woojin.
“Because you called me.”
“That...that doesnt mean you should be mean and steal my drinks away.”
Woojin was exasperated, “You’re drunk, Jihoon.”
“No, I’m heartbroken.”
“You and Minhyun were never in a relationship to begin with.”
“Exactly." Jihoon exclaimed, "I...I’m worthless. I’m not loveable enough for people to want to date me.” Woojin decided not to remind Jihoon of his many suitors again and patted the older man’s back.
“I’m going to graduate alone. And die alone.”
“Hey now, that’s a little drastic. You still have me?”
“But I don't want you.” And if that didn't pierce through Woojin’s heart, he didn't know what did. He sighed, knowing it all along.
Jihoon continued, “I want my first crush.”
Woojin fought not to give a scathing remark about his first crush since he’d just left Jihoon not too long ago. “Minhyun hyung isn’t here.”
“Not Minhyun hyung.”
Woojin’s brow rose. He’d never heard of a first crush, “Then who?”
“My best friend.” Woojin felt his heart stop. “Who’s straight.”
Wait what?
“You don’t have a best friend who’s straight, Jihoon.” Woojin told him slowly.
“Yes, I do. He used to have girlfriends and he said he liked girls in high school and even accepted a confession from a girl.” Jihoon sniffed, rubbing one of his eyes as if he were about to cry.
Woojin was starting to understand now. Of course Jihoon thought he was straight because he'd only ever seen him with a girlfriend and not that one time Woojin tried dating a guy for two weeks before breaking it off. Something about him not being Jihoon kind of was the reason for it.
“But i don’t have moobs.”
Woojin snapped back to what Jihoon was blabbering about and asked, “What?”
“I don’t have BOOBS!”
“Okay. We’re getting you out of here.” Woojin decided, taking his wallet out to leave some cash on the table.
“I only started crushing on Minhyun hyung because I wanted to get over my frist...my first crush. He was really nice and really handsome. More handsome than my first crush but…I still like first crush more.”
Woojin shook his head, “Jihoon, you idiot.” His mind was swirling with thoughts of the past, of actions long forgotten, of words never heard, of hope and of love for the man before him, “Just keep thinking about first crush, you might end up getting a chance to be with him.”
He gathered the male in his arms and attempted to lift Jihoon bridal style but when he realized Jihoon weighed more than he realized, he switched his hold to carry Jihoon in a piggy-back style instead.
“Woojin,” Jihoon muttered into his ear. The younger man made sure he had a secure hold of his friend before he began the walk back home.
“Woojin.”
“What?”
“I love you.”
Woojin almost tripped on a tin can. He cursed under his breath, hands tightening where they held Jihoon’s thighs for support, “D-don’t just say that out of nowhere. We could get killed.”
Jihoon chuckled and buried his face further against Woojin’s neck, “You’re funny.”
Woojin sighed, “Yeah, I am. And whipped too I guess, or so Daehwi and Jinyoung keep telling me.” Jihoon just hummed something under his breath and he sounded like he was falling asleep so Woojin let him rest while he was left alone with his chaotic thoughts and complicated feelings.
~o0o~
Jihoon woke up the next day feeling like he was hit by a truck. He groaned and wished for death as his head pounded bloody murder into his skull. He was hungover and fucked for his first class. He just wanted to continue burying his face against his warm sheets and smell this really nice and familiar scent of—
Wait.
Jihoon lifted his head and found Woojin looking down at him with fear in his eyes.
“Hi?”
There was a loud scream before a huge thump was heard and then, “Why’d you push me off the bed?!”
“Why were you in my bed? What did you do?” Jihoon’s princess character would be proud of his scandalized reaction. He had his blanket over his chest even though he was fully clothed and glared at his friend.
“Nothing! It was you who didn’t want me to leave.” Woojin got up and crossed his arms over his chest. It was good he decided to keep his shirt on despite his habit of taking it off.
“Me?!”
“Yeah, you were drunk. You don’t remember?” Woojin asked, his voice growing hesitant at the end.
Jihoon racked his brain to remember what happened and all he could recall was Minhyun telling him he needed to leave early for a friend. The reminder brought a frown to his face but he didn’t remember calling Woojin. Must have been instinct.
“Nope. All I remember is getting my heart broken.” Again. Jihoon remembered the first was when he found out his best friend had a girlfriend. Woojin could never know that his first crush wasn’t Minhyun but him and it was best for their friendship to leave it at that.
“Well I don’t think your heart is the only one that’s going to get broken if you don’t get out of bed now.” Woojin said, already gathering his clothes from his closet to start changing.
Jihoon groaned and flopped back down on the bed, just wanting to sleep his hangover away, “What for? I only have—”
He gasped and sat upright, the action making him almost dizzy with nausea, “Shit! Boa is gonna kill me!”
Woojin laughed, high and obnoxious, “Better hurry before she locks the door again.”
Jihoon struggled out of his bed sheets, scrambling on the floor and crawling to his closet to snatch some clothes, “Fuck you!”
He really had the best of friends.
~o0o~
“Have you noticed something odd about Woojin lately?” Jihoon asked Daehwi one day during practice. His dongsaeng was given the lucky job of being the Mirror on the Wall so he barely had any lines and all he had to do was stand there and talk. Jihoon sometimes envied it when he was too tired to act out on stage but he loved being the main lead too much to give it up.
Daehwi turned to him with a raised brow, “No? Why?”
Jihoon shrugged, “I don’t know. He just seems a bit more...happy lately. Did he get a girlfriend?”
“Oh? Are you worried about that?” Daehwi was suddenly all smiles and Jihoon knew he should have asked Jinyoung instead. But Daehwi knew Woojin longer and was probably the only person aside from Jihoon and his little sister that Woojin spoiled.
Jihoon tried to keep his face even, “No. Just curious.”
“What if I told you he has a crush instead?”
Jihoon almost choked on air, “Woojin has someone he likes?” He thought he was being stupid for assuming but now it looked like his worst nightmare was coming back to haunt him.
Daehwi nodded, smile sly and eyes twinkling, “There’s a reason he didn’t tell you himself, Jihoon hyung. You just have to figure out why.”
The older male frowned, “What? Why can’t you just tell me?”
“Because it’s not my secret to tell?” He said like it was obvious but Jihoon couldn’t guess out of all the girls in school. It must mean he liked someone close to him or maybe even someone from this very club. Jihoon was going to hate himself if it was. He was the reason Woojin was here in the first place.
“Hey!”
Speak of the devil. Woojin bounded over and immediately placed an arm around Jihoon’s shoulders, his entire face glowing with happiness. This was what Jihoon was talking about. It was worrisome. Woojin was sometimes a smiling idiot, yes, but not this much. And Jihoon always felt his breath catching whenever Woojin’s snaggletooth peeked out so this new Woojin wasn’t helping matters.
Flustered with the proximity, Jihoon pushed at his friend, “Ew, you smell.”
“Like you smell any better.”
“I know I smell better than you ‘cause I’m forced to clean your stupid dirty laundry everyday.”
“Which means you should be used to it by now. And what do you mean forced? We had a deal.”
Jihoon raised his chin up, “I recall no such thing. If you have no proof, it didn’t happen.”
Woojin shook his head, “You’re insufferable.”
“You’re irritating.”
“You’re annoying.”
“That’s the same fucking—”
“Oh my god! Get a room!” Daehwi yelled, surprising the two from their little banter and they faced the younger cautiously.
“Are you...okay?” Woojin reared back as if whatever craziness Daehwi possessed would infect him too.
Jihoon replied with the same careful tone, “What’s wrong with you?”
That apparently wasn’t the right thing to say because Daehwi snapped, “What’s wrong with me? The question is: what’s wrong with you?! The both of you! You’re so oblivious, it’s driving me up the wall. I will actually throw something right now and if you two don’t solve this unresolved tension I swear to god you will not like me when I’m mad.”
He panted when he was done and the two older males just stared at him wide-eyed.
“Daehwi, are you okay?” Jinyoung, the ever loving boyfriend, appeared right on time.
Daehwi breathed in and smoothed back his hair, “I’m fine. I just need air and away from these two imbeciles.” He then turned back to them with a smile, “You know I love you and I just want what’s best for you, right?”
Jihoon and Woojin exchanged glances, “Right…”
Daehwi nodded before he went off with a concerned Jinyoung at his side. Jihoon followed him with his eyes till he was out of sight before finally letting his muscles relax, “What was that about?”
Woojin shrugged, “Probably not important.”
“Probably? Did you not see him just go off on us.”
“Yeah, and it was fucking scary but,” Woojin whirled to face him and Jihoon blinked, suddenly attentive under the attention, “he’ll get over it.”
“You’re not going to kill him are you?”
Woojin punched him on the shoulder, “I’m starting to think you have really low faith in my character.”
Jihoon’s expression turned to disbelief, “When did I ever have high faith in your character?”
Narrowing his eyes, Woojin growled, “Are you asking for a fight?”
“You couldn’t beat me if you try.” Jihoon sneered.
They ended up mini wrestling backstage. Again. The staff were getting used to it at this point.
~o0o~
The day of the performance finally loomed over them and it was also the first time Jihoon would be wearing his costume in full blown attire since the dress rehearsals only allowed him a skirt and small heels. Apparently Jaehwan wanted Jihoon’s appearance to be a surprise, even to their own cast members, since Snow White was known for her looks and everyone’s reactions had to be authentic.
Woojin of course liked to defy the rules especially if Jaehwan was the one implementing it.
So he burst into Jihoon’s dressing room without knocking, fiddling with the belt around his waist, “Jihoon, I need your help with— woah.”
The person in front of the mirror turned at the noise and Woojin found himself looking into the eyes of his best friend who was looking unfairly like the fairest woman in the land right now. Someone had dyed Jihoon’s brown locks to black and kept the length of it, just adding a headband over his head. His makeup seemed minimal, except for the glaring, cherry red lips that Woojin swore should be an illegal shade. He was wearing the usual costume of Snow White, yellow skirt and blue top and Woojin should be laughing at how ridiculous he looks but that’d be a lie, wouldn’t it? Because Jihoon looked drop dead gorgeous and Woojin suddenly felt like sitting down.
Jihoon raised a brow at his silence and lifted his skirt a little, “What do you think?”
Clearly, he was hoping for a good response. After many up and down glances and Woojin’s face growing noticeably redder, he responded with a single, “nope.”
Jihoon frowned, hurt and embarrassed, “What? Why not?”
“Too much makeup, your hair is a mess and you’re wearing a dress.”
Jihoon sneered, glaring at Woojin, “Alright fine I get it, Mr. Supportive.”
Before Jihoon could draw away, Woojin reached over and cupped his cheek with one hand all of a sudden, “Now there’s the man I know and love. You look more beautiful this way.” He saw the way Jihoon’s cheeks darkened and his lips curled into a smirk.
Jihoon punched him on the chest, satisfied when Woojin released a pained sound.
“This is what I get for complimenting you?”
“You were insulting me first. How dare you say I don’t look good when I’m about to be thrust in front of our classmates and teachers like this?” Jihoon pouted and crossed his arms under his fake breasts.
Woojin snorted, “You’ll do fine. You’re probably like the prettiest Snow White I’ve seen and that’s saying something considering all the movies we’ve watched.”
Jihoon was speechless. Seriously if Woojin kept this weird kind of flirting up, Jihoon’s heart wouldn’t be able to take it. Just what had come over his best friend? Woojin’s actions as of late had been giving Jihoon too much hope for something...something he thought was impossible to attain before. His fear of rejection was getting in the way of his own happiness so maybe it was time for Jihoon to brave up and say something for once.
“Woojin, wait—”
“Everyone please assemble backstage for a brief role call.” Jaehwan announced through the speakers.
Jihoon wilted. There went his chance. He followed after Woojin to where their meeting was taking place on stage and Jaehwan came up right behind them.
“Alright! So just call out present when you hear your name. Sejeong?”
“Present!”
Woojin leaned over as the attendance continued, “What did you want to tell me?” He said in a whisper.
Jihoon sighed, “Nevermind. It wasn’t important.” Though it kinda was. He was going to have to find a better opportunity next time.
“Minhyun. Minhyun?”
Jaehwan looked up from his clipboard, face pale as he looked around the assembled crowd with panic in his eyes.
“Has anyone seen Minhyun?”
~o0o~
“You mean he’s not here?!” Sungwoon shrieked, hands flapping at his sides.
“Yeah and Seongwoo either. He’s not answering any of my phone calls! What do you want me to do, storm his house? There’s no time!” Jaehwan almost pulled his hair out. He couldn’t believe this was happening to them on the day of the show. Bunch of inconsiderate assholes, Jaehwan was going to pit them to the lions once he saw them again.
“So we’re going to have a princess with no prince? What about the true love’s kiss? How is that going to work?” Sungwoon looked frantic, thinking all of the problems this could pose.
Jaehwan bit his lip, and thought hard how they could do this without making it too obvious that one of their actors was missing. Turning around, he spotted Woojin a far distance away speaking with Jihoon. He hoped those two would stop wrestling each other to the ground like last time but having noticed their undeniable chemistry together, Jaehwan was convinced something was going on between them.
He grinned. He was a genius.
~o0o~
Jihoon wasn’t told that both Seongwoo and Minhyun had ditched the play. Jaehwan didn’t need his only lead to feel pressured that he wouldn’t be having a prince acting with him in his first scene so the director improvised and told Jihoon Minhyun was just running late.
If only that were true.
Jihoon ended up doing the scene with a narrator instead.
“I’m wishing to find love as well.”
“Who are you?” Jihoon asked, though he knew already who that familiar deep voice belonged to. Woojin? Jaehwan asked Woojin to narrate the prince’s lines for him.
“I am a Prince from the far east kingdom. And who might you be, Princess?” The audience glanced around the room for the disembodied voice though only Jihoon could see Woojin standing backstage, speaking through a mic with the script in hand.
“Oh, I’m no Princess. I’m just a servant.” Jihoon said from where he hid himself behind a door.
“With beauty like yours? Nonsense.”
“But it’s the truth.” Jihoon insisted, peeking around for the prince and catching Woojin’s gaze. He smiled sweetly and the other immediately looked back down at the script.
“At least give me your name?”
Jihoon giggled and moved up a small flight of stairs to end up in a balcony of the huge moving set, leaning against the railing, “Snow White.”
“Snow White. A beautiful name for a beautiful princess.” Woojin said and Jihoon sighed eyes still fixed on his friend. This was the moment his character was starting to fall for the prince. If only life was that easy.
They finished the scene quickly and Jihoon had the most fun when he was acting with the “dwarves” since Jihoon had a front seat view of Woojin acting his best for the role. It was cute how much he was throwing himself into his character and Jihoon always had to fight the urge to smile whenever he did something so Grumpy like.
Of course, Jihoon liked to think he took most of the credit for forcing Woojin to watch all those movies with him.
But the play was nearing its end and there was still no Minhyun in sight. Jihoon for once was more concerned with the play than the man he’s crushing over. Besides, there must be a reason Seongwoo wasn’t here as well.
“How am I going to wake up if there’s no actual character of the prince kissing me?” Jihoon said in a panicked voice backstage, glaring at Jaehwan who had lied to him at the start.
“Don’t worry! Minhyun hyung is on his way as we speak. Just lay down there and you’ll see your prince right away.” Jaehwan insisted, patting him on the back so he wouldn’t look so angry anymore.
“I hope for your sake that’s true or I’m going to find a way to wake up myself.” Jihoon hopped on the bed coffin and laid down as told. Once Jihoon was ready and the lights blacked out for the next scene, he was rolled onto the stage and left there for the dwarves to mourn over.
Jaehwan turned to Woojin who was about to step out for the scene. He held him back with a hand on his arm, whispering, “Oh you’re not done acting as prince yet, Woojin.”
“Huh?”
~o0o~
Woojin tried to protest. He really did, because what the fuck were Jaehwan and Daehwi thinking of making him do?!
“I can’t do that?!” Woojin panicked, eyes darting between Jaehwan and Daehwi’s determined gazes.
“Yes you can! Just go out there!” Daehwi pulled on his arm even as Woojin used all his weight in the other direction. Normally, Woojin could overpower a bean like Daehwi but with Jaehwan helping him, he was outnumbered.
“I don’t even know a single line of the Prince?”
“Perfect! Just improvise your way through. We’ve already told the other dwarves not to mess your exchange with Jihoon.”
Woojin turned to him, “You planned this already?!”
Jaehwan grinned, “When you’re a director, you gotta think of every problem and solve them ahead of time.” He winked.
“Now go!” Daehwi insisted, pushing Woojin’s back hard until he stumbled onto the stage, flapping his arms wildly and making a complete fool of himself.
He quickly straightened up himself when all eyes were on him now and he cleared his throat. He approached where Jihoon was “resting” and looked down at his beautiful face. Jihoon was going to hate him for this but he could at least tell him he’d been coerced.
And when was he ever going to get the opportunity to kiss Park Jihoon?
“Princess, please wake up.” Woojin whispered, before leaning down and gently placing his lips over Jihoon’s. It was just a light brush, Jihoon probably barely even felt it but he felt the other man release a gush of air over his lips and Woojin was tempted to keep kissing him. But he pulled back, heart thudding against his chest as he waited for Jihoon’s reaction.
Slowly Jihoon opened his eyes, expecting to see Minhyun’s beautiful face staring down at him, the prince waking him from the curse and finally putting an end to this play. But instead Jihoon was faced with—
“Woojin?!”
His best friend’s lips, the same lips that just touched his, curled into a strained smile, telling him with his eyes to play along even though Jihoon was so confused and so flustered right now, “You must still be dazed from your sleep, Princess. It’s Grumpy, remember?”
Jihoon darted a glance at the audience and then back at Woojin, not knowing what to do now. What was he supposed to do when his best friend and secret crush had just kissed him on the lips with an entire audience and their friends watching?
Suddenly, the speakers crackled to life and a voice that sounded strangely like Daehwi’s began speaking,
“With true love’s kiss, Snow White has finally woken up from the curse but it has also broken another curse cast on someone else.”
Their eyes widened. Jihoon couldn’t believe what was going on now.
Woojin was then hit on the back of the head with a plastic crown and he turned to the perpetrator (Jinyoung) who grinned from backstage and gave him two peace signs in apology.
“No longer an angry looking dwarf, Grumpy was reverted back to his true self.”
Realizing where this was going, Woojin picked up the crown and slowly placed it over his head. A few people in the audience gasped at this twist in the plot and Woojin had to hold himself back from snorting. It was just added in today.
“And the prince was once more united with Snow White.”
Woojin held out his hand for Jihoon to take and the older male took it without question. He helped lift Jihoon from his bed coffin and placed him down in front of him, hands still holding his.
“He confessed his undying love for her.”
What?! The two simultaneously thought in different degrees. Woojin cursed Daehwi many times in his head before he could think on how he could confess his love for Jihoon. This was totally a set up! And Woojin couldn’t escape or risk ruining the play everyone worked so hard for.
“I…” Woojin began but his voice was dry. He cleared his throat, “I’ve loved you for a long time, Ji— uh, Princess. I tried to push them away because I was scared you wouldn’t see me the same way and that it might ruin what we already had.” It probably wasn’t in context to the play but Woojin was being 100% honest with himself. It probably helped that Jihoon was looking at him as if he was hanging onto every word, eyes bright with so much emotion Woojin couldn’t distinguish any of them but he held onto the string of hope that maybe one of them was love.
“But I don’t want to be scared anymore. I want to be with you. I-if you’ll have me.” Woojin ended a little uncertainly.
There was a small pause when neither of them did or say anything. Then the corner of Jihoon’s lips twitched up and stretched into a full blown smile. Woojin felt his breath catch at the sight.
“And Snow White assuaged his fear with her own true feelings for him.”
Jihoon rolled his eyes at the subtle pushing. There was no way he couldn't respond, “You don’t know how long I’ve wanted to hear that from you. I fell for you early as well and when I tried to replace them with someone else, it didn’t work. You were still on my mind constantly. I want to be with you too, Woojin—”
“Prince.” Woojin whispered, his face red from the confession.
“Prince!” Jihoon laughed at his own blunder and promptly threw himself at the younger male. Woojin caught Jihoon and wrapped his arms tight around his waist, bringing the older male flush against him as Jihoon buried his head in the crook of Woojin’s neck.
Suddenly there was a loud applause as the audience, which they’d actually forgotten was there, clapped over their display of authentic feelings. They pulled apart, embarrassed that they’d let themselves get caught in the moment. Then people were surrounding the newly made couple as the cast members ran from backstage to give a them group hug with Daehwi speaking over their joy and cheers, “With that, the Prince and Princess Snow White lived happily ever after, thanking for the rest of their lives an adorable magical boy named Lee Daehwi without whom none of this would have been possible. The End.”
Jihoon laughed and Woojin was with him in amusement. Daehwi wasn’t going to live this moment down for the rest of their lives and the least they could do was treat the little shit out. Maybe bring Jinyoung along for his moral support.
When they all bowed one last time in front of the audience and thanked them for coming, Woojin led Jihoon out of the stage to the back, wanting a chance to talk with him alone.
But he stopped abruptly at Minhyun and Seongwoo standing there grinning at them.
“Minhyun hyung, Seongwoo hyung!” Jihoon said, surprise coloring his features before it darkened to a scowl, “Where the hell were you two?”
The two hyungs faces paled and Woojin was surprised Jihoon was revealing his less than cute self in front of them. Then again Jihoon no longer had any reason to be with Minhyun so Woojin was okay with this.
“Uh uhm…we were...” Minhyun stuttered, face growing red as he exchanged glances with Seongwoo.
“It was my fault. We got a little caught up into something and…” Seongwoo slowly grinned when he slid his hand against Minhyun’s and interlaced their fingers, “...well we found ourselves a little distracted after.”
Minhyun smiled at him before they turned their heads to the younger two whose faces had scrunched up in disgust.
“Oh god, if I’d known you liked Seongwoo hyung, I would never have pursued you. I was already doomed to fail from the start.” Jihoon said.
Minhyun blinked, “Wait, what?”
Seongwoo snorted, wrapping an arm around Minhyun’s waist, “Well, no luck, kid. This guy’s mine.”
Jihoon made a so-what face and locked his hands around Woojin’s arm, making the other stumble as he was dragged to Jihoon’s side. “And this one’s mine. So you have nothing to worry about.”
Woojin's cheeks tinged pink under the blatant declaration and he noticed Minhyun was just shaking his head in exasperation at his boyfriend’s actions.
“Well anyway. I’m sorry for not being here but I’m glad you managed to finish the play successfully. I caught a bit of the last part. That was some really good improvisation.” Minhyun complimented.
“It was cute.” Seongwoo shrugged, but he gave the two a pleased smile.
Out of nowhere, a huge voice bellowed, “YAH! YOU CALL YOURSELVES PRESIDENT AND VICE PRESIDENT OF THIS CLUB BUT DON’T EVEN SHOW UP TO THE ACTUAL PLAY. EXPLAIN YOURSELVES, YOU PIECE OF SHITS.”
“And looks like it’s time for us to go.” The President said, looking down at his watch as if they were running late.
Jihoon and Woojin just waved goodbye and silently prayed for their souls as they scrambled away from Jaehwan and Sungwoon’s wrath.
“Okay, help me get out of this costume. It itches.” Jihoon said, leading Woojin to his dressing room.
“Oh. You’re going to undress in front of me? I didn’t know you moved so fast, Jihoon.” Woojin grinned teasingly when Jihoon threatened to kick him where it hurt. Thankfully, the other made no more stupid pick up lines and helped Jihoon out of his dress so that he could wear his comfortable hoodie and sweatpants instead.
Woojin dressed out of his own costume as well and afterwards, he helped remove the makeup on Jihoon’s face, gently wiping the cotton over his soft features.
“You’re staring.” Jihoon commented quietly.
“Of course, I am. You’re good looking.”
Jihoon rolled his eyes, exasperated, but his lips were slightly smiling, “You looked good too. In your dwarf outfit.”
“Rule number one in this relationship: we should not tell lies.” Woojin said, swiping the cotton over the foundation on Jihoon’s cheeks.
The older male hit him on the shoulder, “I’m serious. I’ve always found you...hot.” Jihoon muttered under his breath.
Woojin fake gasped, “Have you been staring at me every time I walk out of the bathroom half naked?”
The smack to his arm this time hurt even more and Jihoon glared at him, but it wasn’t much effective when his cheeks were so red, “Shut up. You’ve probably stared at me too.”
Woojin shrugged, “Touche.”
“When did you start liking me?” Jihoon eventually asked, his eyes closed as Woojin attempted to remove his eyeliner and shadow.
“Hmm…probably back in high school.”
“You too?” Jihoon asked in wonder.
“Yeah. I thought getting a girlfriend would help these weird feelings go away but… it didn’t. And I’m glad it stayed.” Woojin murmured, giving a soft tap to Jihoon’s closed lids for him to open his eyes again. His face was then cupped by warm large hands and Jihoon smiled up at him.
“We’re idiots.”
“Yeah. Or as Daehwi liked to call it, oblivious fools.” They chuckled a bit before quieting down again as Woojin attempted to remove the lipstick on Jihoon’s lips. As he did so, Jihoon noticed a red stain on Woojin’s own lips and he flushed when he remembered that their lips had touched not too long ago.
Jihoon sighed all of a sudden and Woojin’s brows furrowed. “What’s wrong?”
“We had our first kiss together and it was only a peck and in front of a lot of people. I’m disappointed.” Jihoon pursed his lips together and raised a hand to thumb away a bit of the red taint on Woojin’s bottom lip.
“Let me make up for it then.”
Jihoon wanted to ask what for but he got his answer in the next second. Woojin leaned in and gave Jihoon all the time in the world to back away but he didn’t. He shut his eyes instead and pressed back when soft lips landed gently on his.
It was deeper than last time and much longer. Woojin seemed to be memorizing every inch of his lips as he cupped Jihoon’s cheeks and angled his head for better access. Jihoon allowed him, following whatever Woojin wanted because it’s what Jihoon wanted as well and he couldn’t believe it took him so long for him to realize that.
His arms found themselves wrapped around Woojin’s shoulders, pressing himself closer to the younger male as the other wrapped one arm around his waist, the other hand still resting on the side of Jihoon’s face. He wondered if Woojin could feel how warm he was through his palm because Jihoon felt like he was burning inside, something he never expected a kiss from Woojin could make him feel.
Soon, Woojin was pulling away and Jihoon followed after him with a whine to “not stop” but Woojin held him back gently. He rested his forehead against Jihoon’s, his hot breath fanning over Jihoon’s red mouth, and said, “We should have done that from the start.”
“You don’t say.” Jihoon wryly grinned and Woojin would have returned it had Jihoon not pulled him down by the nape to resume their kiss.
“Alright, lover boys cut the PDA. We’ve got a last meeting to attend to.” Jaehwan’s voice cut through the romantic haze of the couple’s heads and they turned in unison to glare at the director standing by the entrance of the dressing room for interrupting them.
He held his hands up in surrender, eyes growing wide at the reaction, “Uh please don’t kill me. It’s just one last assembly, I promise.”
Jihoon sighed and pulled away from his friend? Lover? Boyfriend? He held Woojin’s hand in his and smiled. Whatever they were, Jihoon was happy to have Woojin at his side now.
“Okay! Since this play did so well, I’m planning to write a sequel play for it! Who’s with me?” Jaehwan said excitedly to the cast members gathered around him, hand raised in the air.
Everyone ran away, Woojin and Jihoon being the first ones to leave before they could subject themselves to that again. Laughing, they ran hand in hand, wanting to create their own happy ending instead.