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For his entire life, Changbin has prided himself in his ability to stay out of trouble. Sure, he wasn't the best student either, but at the same time, he never drew attention to himself. He pretty much just existed, only holding significance to those close to him.
Countless times, Jisung and Seungmin would try to get him to go to parties with him. And each and every time, Changbin would refuse. He was simply just not a party person. The two had also tried to hook Changbin up with a couple innocent bystanders, who were thankfully too weirded out, respectfully declined (or, at least some), and walked away.
Changbin's life was normal, to say the least. And he was looking to keep it that way.
That was until, to put it simply, it wasn't so simple after all.
⚜
"Hey, Binnie!"
Changbin increases his pace to his next class in hopes of reaching the door faster. He doesn't feel like talking right now, and especially not to Jisung. Yet the persistent mosquito pushes forward, reaching his (currently very annoyed) destination.
"Bin, been looking all over for you today. You're not going to believe this." Jisung cuts off as he doubles over, exaggerating his breathlessness. "Man, you walk fast."
"Yeah, well, I have places to be." Changbin says, irritated at his current situation.
Jisung straightens up, his always grinning face never wavering. "Not even a friendly 'hello'? You know, studies show that kindness—"
Changbin cuts him off before he can drone on about whatever he was going to say. "Look, if you have nothing to say—"
Jisung interrupts Changbin's sentence. "Sorry, got sidetracked a lil' bit by your nasty attitude—"
"Jisung!"
"Right, uh, sorry." Jisung laughs, unshaken. "So, uh, anyway, I was going to tell you that Hyunjin is hosting another party, and, uh...well, I thought you might want to come. Ya know, loosen up those bolts locking your 'I-don't-do-friends' door."
"No," Changbin says, already starting to walk away.
"Aww, come on!" Jisung whines. "It'll be fun! I promise."
"Fun?" Changbin says incredulously. "Like all the other times that end up with me being the designated driver and the rest of you drunk out of your fucking minds?"
"Come on," Jisung punches Changbin's arm affectionately. "You can always get wasted with us, too. It's always your choice to stay sober, and lame, instead of having fun with the rest of us."
Changbin punches Jisung in the arm in retaliation, only this time a lot harder. "Excuse me, I am staying sober because I know that none of the rest of you will be, either. Hell, even Chan drinks and he's the most'parent' out of all of us. I'm just being responsible."
Jisung snorts. "Yeah, right. Responsible." He pretends to examine his nails. "Just say you hate alcohol and get on with it, yeah?"
Changbin scowls. "Look, if all you came here was to criticize me, then I don't want to hear it."
Jisung slings an arm around Changbin. "Okay, okay, fine. I promise this time will be different. I can just tell Chan that he's the designated driver this time. I swear on my dancing abilities—"
"That's not saying a lot."
"Fine, I swear on my good looks that I will not try to hook you up with anyone this time. You are not looking for a match today, and I will respect that."
"You better," grumbles Changbin as he readjusts his grip on his bag. His class is starting soon and he's itching to get to it. As much as he hates biology, his teacher is the personification of hell itself and would never let Changbin forget his tardiness. Needless to say, Changbin has never been late to that class, and was not looking to mess up that perfect attendance streak today.
"Come at like 9 or something, that's when everyone's already there." Jisung begins scampering away. "Thanks again, Changie!"
Changbin gives Jisung the finger and the two walk in opposite directions.
As Changbin gets to his biology class and makes his way to his seat, he glances at the clock.
2 minutes early, that's a new record of the time between he gets there and the time the bell rings.
"Hey," Hyunjin, Changbin's friend, leans over towards his desk. "Deskmate. Changbin. Changie—"
"What?" Great, two of these things in a row. Changbin was hoping to get through class without any interruptions, but with Hyunjin next to him, that was a dream well out of his grasp.
"Did Jisung invite you to the party?" Hyunjin asks.
"Yeah, you goin' too?"
"Uh-huh, everyone is. It's at Jiyong's house, and everyone knows he's super rich." Hyunjin drops his voice even lower to avoid being heard by any other listeners. "Word around the school is that he even has his own floor. How cool is that?"
Changbin is half-listening. He's heard enough about Jiyong and his possy, and this party is definitely not something that would spark his interest at all. Changbin was just going to avoid the whining that would follow in his absence the next day.
"Man, I would suck a dick to be rich like that. Even his entire group of friends are like that, too. I think Seunghyun's going into the music industry soon, and Seungri is going to inherit a family company or something."
"You should invest in a sugar daddy," Changbin offers as a solution to Hyunjin's money-related daydreams. "Could make bank if you find someone rich."
Hyunjin pretends to think. "Hmm, that's not a bad idea, actually. Maybe I will."
"I was being facetious."
"Jokes on you, I have no idea what that means."
"It means—"
Mr. Park clears his throat, interrupting the conversation. "Are you two done talking back there? I have a lesson to teach, and if you aren't interested, you are free to step outside and walk yourself to the office instead."
Changbin mutters an apology, and Hyunjin stays quiet, scooting back to his desk.
"That's what I thought." Mr. Park continues on with the lesson about biology and shit, and the class returns to normal.
Hyunjin turns to Changbin again.
"See you tonight. Make sure to bring your socializing skills with you, cause I'm going to introduce you to a couple friends."
"I'm not—"
"Boys! What did I just tell you?"
"Sorry... again."
Before turning back to the front of the class, Hyunjin winks at Changbin and mouths, You'll love it.
Changbin sticks his tongue out at Hyunjin before finally paying attention to the lesson.
⚜
The sun has long since disappeared from the sky, and the darkness has already covered the once blueness. A lot of the houses in this neighborhood have their lights off, so Changbin figures it is pretty late to be arriving.
The faint blare of music is coming from the house, and holy shit—was this even considered a house?
The mansion had to be at least four stories high, completely decked with shiny mirrors and white brick. Several trees covered the vicinity of the driveway, and the hedges leading to the front doors were neatly trimmed in long rectangles. The green grass was damp, and Changbin could see a faint glimmer of wetness on the walls, the only signs of rain from the previous day.
Changbin parks his car farther away from the driveway, as to avoid trouble exiting the neighborhood. He recognizes Chan's car, and figures he must have picked up a few of the others. Looks like I might have to drive someone home, Changbin thinks as he wonders how Chan would fit several drunk people into one car. Changbin had denied a ride because of this, as much as he would have loved to avoid the hassle of parallel parking.
Several of the lights in the mansion are on, and as Changbin makes his way to the front, he can see several shadows hidden behind the curtains.
He grabs the door handle and pulls it open, immediately regretting his decision. Music is blasting into his ears—some type of rap—and the smell of smoke and alcohol invade Changbin's nostrils.
But before he can back out, Changbin spots Seungmin making his way over to him.
"Changie, what brings you here?" Seungmin's voice is wobbly, which suggests prior drinks.
"Jisung," says Changbin. "Wouldn't let me back out of it this time."
Seungmin nods and slings his arm around Changbin's shoulder, closing the door with the other. "The gang's all here, c'mon."
The two walk through the crowd of people, avoiding being pushed down and possibly trampled on. Changbin ducks to escape almost getting hit by an arm, and jerks away from a sloshing cup full of stain-able liquid, presumably alcohol. Seungmin finally leads him to a couch near the back of the room, where he can spot Chan, Woojin, Jisung, Minho, and Jeongin. Minho spots him first and waves enthusiastically. Jisung grins from Minho's lap, clearly buzzed out and dazed.
"Glad you could make it," Minho shouts through the loudness. Woojin scoots over to make room on the couch. Changbin gladly takes a spot between Woojin and Jeongin, glad to finally be out of the crowd.
"Jisung's already done," Minho slurs.
Jisung bats at Minho's face. "Not true," he groans. "I'll be ready for another round in a bit, just you wait."
Chan raises an eyebrow at the collapsed boy. "That's a no from me. You're clearly wasted."
Changbin glances at Jeongin. "Chan not letting you drink, huh?"
"Yeah," Jeongin says glumly. "Hyunjin tried to sneak me a taste but Chan caught him and got mad."
"Where is Hyunjin, anyway?"
Changbin's question is cut short when he spots Hyunjin coming through from the kitchen with two cups in his hand.
"Changbin, I got you something!" Hyunjin hands a cup to Changbin, who begrudgingly obliges. "It's not that strong, don't worry. Figured you might want to be able to see the road in the morning."
Changbin takes a sip, trying to ignore the sound of Chan and Minho yelling, and Jisung crying hysterically. He didn't know what was happening and didn't want to find out. The drink sends a fuzzy tingling through his body, numbing his limbs, and he could feel a burn in his stomach. Changbin carefully sets down the cup on the floor.
"Oh, hey, I almost forgot. I have someone I want you to meet." Hyunjin looks around the room. "I have no idea where he is right now."
"Yeah? Who is he?"
"His name is Felix, he's a transfer from Australia."
"So, like Chan?" Changbin asks. "Is he Korean?"
"Yeah, his parents are Korean, but he was born in Australia. His Korean's pretty good, too."
"What's he like?"
"Like Jisung, kinda. The happy demeanor, real friendly. He's a real nice guy, I think you two'll get along just fine." Hyunjin gives Changbin a judging look. "Just be nice when you meet him, alright? Don't scare him off."
Changbin rolls his eyes. "I'll try." His leg is twitching, which isn't a good sign, and he feels the need to get away before he's thrust into a full-blown panic attack from the crowded room.
Changbin gets up and steps over the cup on the ground. He turns back to the couch. "I'm going to the bathroom. Wish me luck." Not waiting for a reply, Changbin turns and heads to the hallway, hoping the bathroom closest to him wasn't occupied. Naturally, it was. So he heads to the stairs and makes his way up. Might as well go to the top story. It's probably less crowded.
The fourth floor is, thankfully, not as crowded. As a matter of fact, it's pretty empty. The only sounds are occasional laughter coming from closed doors.
Changbin makes his way to the end of the hall, where he can see a bathroom door that is open. His heart has stopped beating at a fast pace by now and he needs to wet his face, maybe hop in the shower real quick.
A sudden sob coming from a slightly open door makes Changbin stop. He backs up slowly and leans towards the crack in the doorway. The room is dim, but he can make out two people, both on the bed. Soft whispering can be heard, too quiet to make out entire words. He can see the person on the bed push at the other on top. The person on top grabs both hands and pins them down. More harsh whispering.
Changbin can feel his heart beating again. Was this consensual? Should he intervene?
His thoughts are confirmed as the figure on top shoves their hands down the pants of the other, and a loud whimper is heard.
Changbin decides he should make his move, as scared as he was. He pushes the door open and turns the light on fully. The two figures jerk up, and Changbin makes them out to be both boys.
The boy on top, the presumably sexual assaulter, glares at Changbin. "Who—What are you—Fuck." He quickly gets up and darts out of the room, not wanting to make a scene. When Changbin checks to make sure he left completely, he makes his way to the bed.
The boy on the bed is softly crying into his hands. His shirt is unbuttoned and his pants are tugged down a bit. Fortunately, he looks okay.
"Hey," Changbin is surprised to find his voice not wavering, with an unfamiliar softness to it. "Are you alright?"
The boy sits up and hurriedly wipes his face with his sleeve. "Yeah, yeah, I'm fine. Thanks."
Changbin feels weird just standing there, so he goes up to the boy and sits next to him on the bed.
"Here," he says, and awkwardly grabs a tissue from the box on the side of the bed.
The boy takes it and wipes his nose. "Thanks, I really mean it." He turns to face Changbin, and now he can clearly see his face.
The boy has light brown hair, large doe eyes, and soft-looking lips. He has a meadow of freckles over his nose that Changbin finds absolutely adorable.
"I'm Felix, by the way." Oh, the guy Hyunjin wanted to introduce him to. What're the odds.
"Changbin." Changbin, not wanting to find himself caught in another awkward silence, asks: "Did you know him? That guy, I mean."
Felix glances down at his lap and squeezes the tissue. "No, I guess I just got too tipsy... might've led him on, or something."
"Even then, he would have no right to do that to you." Changbin is surprised to find himself talking a considerable amount to a complete stranger. He gets up from the bed and extends a hand towards Felix. Might as well make the most out of this.
"Here, do you want to go downstairs? Hyunjin and the others are waiting."
"How did you... Are you friends with them, too?" Felix looks confused, which is an adorable expression.
"Yeah, he said he wanted to introduce me to you, so I guess that's done." He laughs awkwardly. Fuck.
Felix lets out a soft giggle and takes Changbin's hand. "I want to wash my face first."
The two make their way to the bathroom.
"Holy shit," Changbin says as he turns on the light. The entire spa-looking bathroom was a luxury only Kwon Jiyong himself could have.
Felix turns on the sink and splashes water on his face. While he's drying, he turns to Changbin. "History with Kim-something?"
"Uh, yeah."
"Ahh, I've seen you around then. You and Jisung always walk their together, don'tcha? I have my Korean language class near there and always see you two there."
"You take Korean language?" He can remember Hyunjin telling him about how Felix was an Australian transfer student. "Your Korean is really good."
"Minho has been teaching me, too." Felix hangs the hand towel back up. "Let's go back to the others."
Right after exiting the bathroom, Felix slips his hand into Changbin's, who feels his face heating up.
"How long have you been friends with them for?" Felix asks.
"Uh, like 2 years maybe? Hyunjin and Seungmin I've known for a long time. Jisung, Minho, Woojin, and Chan I met here at school. Jeongin's pretty new 'cause he's young, but he's warmed up to me already," Changbin replies as they walk down the stairs. "What about you?"
"I moved here just a few weeks ago, so not for long. Maybe a week? I met Minho in math, and he introduced me to Jisung and Hyunjin later. The rest I met yesterday. But since Chan is Australian, too, I guess I've talked to him more."
As they get to the bottom of the stairs and walk through the hallway, Changbin finds himself surprised to find that the party doesn't seem as intimidating anymore.
The two walk into the living room, and Felix lets go of his hand to wave at the others on the couch. As they make their way over, Chan looks up from pinching Minho's ear.
"Where've you been? Changbin, I know you went to the bathroom, but Felix, where have you been?" Chan's motherly tone is out now.
"I was, uh, upstairs... hanging out. Nothing serious. Met Changbin there, too."
Hyunjin scoots over and pats the space next to him. "Well, glad to see you two finally met. What're the odds you met the person I was looking forward to introducing you to, eh, Changbin?"
Changbin's lips curve upwards into a slight smile. "Yeah, crazy."
Jisung sits up, apparently recovered enough. "'Ey, what time is it?"
Jeongin glances at his phone screen. "10:03, why?"
"I'm up for some McDonald's right now. Can we go to McDonald's?"
Woojin raises his eyebrow. "You sober enough for that?"
"I ain't drivin'! Chan and Changbin have their cars, so we can just split up... ya know." Jisung pouts at Chan. "Pretty please?"
Chan puts up both hands in a surrendering position. "I'm down. Anyone else?"
A chorus of agreements come from the various bodies over the couch.
Seungmin gets up and stretches. "Who's going in who's car? Changie, you wanna choose your people?"
Changbin lounges back. "Nah, I'm fine with whoever. Except for Jisung."
"Hey!"
"I'll take Woojin, Minho, Jisung, and Seungmin. You got Jeongin, Hyunjin, and Felix?" Chan stands up and pulls up Woojin.
"Yeah."
The group squeeze their way through the crowd, which is still as large as before. The front door is blocked by a kissing couple, so Woojin nudges them aside with his shoulder.
A blast of cool air hits Changbin, and it feels nice compared to the hot, stuffiness of the mansion. The humid smell in the air from the rain is intoxicating, and Changbin breathes it all in.
"Good-bye, mansion," Jeongin waves to the house as they walk to the street. "I'll maybe see you again sometime."
The boys break off into their respective groups and walk to opposite sides of the streets.
"Man, I would kill to be Jiyong," says Felix, coming up next to Changbin. Jeongin and Hyunjin are behind them, talking loudly and laughing.
"What part of his life do you find intriguing?" Changbin says, amused.
"Dude, everything!" Felix exclaims. "The house, the money, the popularity. That dragon statue in front of his house is sick, too."
Changbin unlocks his car, and the four of them squeeze in. Hyunjin whines about Felix getting to the front passenger seat first and reluctantly takes the back with Jeongin.
Jeongin whistles. "New car?"
"Nah," Changbin starts up the car. "Like a year old."
"Neat freak?" Felix smirks. He checks his reflection in the car mirror before opening the window.
"Something like that." Truth is, Changbin's parents would kill him if he made his car into a trash can.
Hyunjin leans forward to rest his head on the back of Changbin's seat. "Hey, Changie, drive a lil' slow, will ya? I wanna open the window."
"Hmm." Changbin opens all four windows to let the fresh air in.
"Chan and the rest already left," Jeongin buts in. "We're gonna be like an hour late now."
Changbin scoffs as he pulls out and begins driving towards the end of the street. "You know Chan, he drives like a grandma. Low chances he actually hands the wheel over to Woojin, who would drive faster."
"Happy meal that they'll get there first," Felix interjects.
"Deal," Changbin says.
The drive there is relatively quiet. Not an uncomfortable silence, just a peaceful one. The wind whipping through Changbin's hair is annoying, but it feels nice, so he keeps his window open. The cool air contrasting with his warm face was a bonus, too.
The lights in Seoul were illuminating Felix's face in a way that left Changbin almost breathless. He had never felt this way towards someone before. Sure, he found people attractive. But never has someone made him feel so flustered before.
The freckles on Felix's face seemed to glow, like mermaid scales almost. His eyes were closed as he rested his head back against the seat.
Changbin pulled into the parking lot of the McDonald's, which was not very crowded. Through the windows, he could see a couple tables filled up. The quiet atmosphere was about to be disrupted by none other than Changbin and Co.
The four of them get out of the car. Hyunjin stretches and ruffles his hair.
"Man, this weather is nice. I wish we could have it year round."
Jeongin leans against the car door to tie his shoe. "Hey, Chan isn't here yet. Should we wait outside or in?"
Felix makes his way to Changbin's side and links arms with him. His eyes glint mischeviously. "I say in." His face is close to Changbin, who can feel his face warm up.
"Someone owes me a happy meal."
The McDonald's is empty, and as Hyunjin and Jeongin make their way to the counter, Felix and Changbin begin pushing tables together.
"It kinda feels weird, doesn't it?" Felix says abruptly.
"What?"
"Even though we only met less than an hour ago, I feel like I've known you forever."
Changbin is silent as he thinks it over. It does feel strange, doesn't it. "Yeah, I suppose so," he says eventually.
Just then, the doors open and the rest of their "crew" walk in.
"Told you they'd get here first," grumbles Minho.
Changbin and Felix walk over. "We've been here for about an hour. You guys get stuck in traffic, or did Grandma Chan strike again?" Changbin teases.
Chan swats Changbin across the head. "Hey, show your grandmother some respect."
"Can I get a milkshake?" Jeongin asks.
"That depends. Who's paying?" Woojin glances around.
"I'll pay," Changbin pipes up. "You guys can get whatever."
"Yes!" Jisung pumps his fist in the air. "I'm gonna wipe your wallet dry."
Felix laughs. "You really up for it?" He asks. "I can split it with you if you want."
Changbin waves him off and follows the rest of them to the counter. "Nah, it's fine." The bill might be a lot, but Changbin didn't really mind. It was moments like these that he felt the need to pay his friends back for simply being his friends. He could give up his dark demeanor for a bit.
Changbin glances over his shoulder to Felix. "Besides, I owe you a happy meal, don't I?"
Felix's lips twitch and his eyes light up. "You can have the toy, if you want."
Changbin laughs and turns back.
Jisung and Minho were arguing over who got a chocolate milkshake, because apparently there was no possible way to make two of the same kind. Chan was ordering for Jeongin, who was leaning on Hyunjin. Woojin was apologizing to the cashier for the loudness, who was insisting that it was fine. Seungmin was rocking back and forth on his feet.
Felix rests his head on Changbin's shoulder, hands tucked in the pockets of his hoodie. Changbin felt his heart flutter, and a rush of warmth spread over him as he looked at all of his friends.
Maybe this was normal. And if it was, it was as normal as Changbin wanted it.