Work Text:
✥
Hoseok’s roommate is strange.
Like, straight up strange.
Like, diving in the ocean at two in the mornings and spending four hours in the bath kind of strange.
Hoseok has caught him many times gulping spoonfuls of salt and munching on rose petals and kissing serpent plants and whispering to blackbirds from their shared room window. His arms shine under licks of sunlight and his eyes bubble a gentle yellow. Sometimes, when he smiles especially wide, especially bright, Hoseok smells seashores and hears cackles of seagulls, feels the mist clinging to the walls of their small flat.
And like, college is already weird enough; Hoseok spends the majority of his free time knocked out from bone deep exhaustion, the remaining time spent galloping from classes to studio to classes again. It’s his third year of college as a textile major, and it feels like forever since he graduated high school. His circle of friends consists of a tired hobo slender man and a loud magpie, yet Hyunwoo’s tendencies still manage to weird him out.
One day, Hoseok comes home after eight hours of classes, and enters without thinking the bathroom.
He comes upon Hyunwoo in the bathtub, wide-eyed and flushed, and Hoseok thinks, yeah cute nothing unusual, until a blue mermaid tail smacks his vision and Hoseok reels back in shock, in disbelief, his lungs seizing up, reality twisting weirdly with the unusual, the unlikely, it feels like a fever dream.
“Oh my God, oh my God,”
Hyunwoo tries to scramble up from the tub, then seems to remember his legless situation and gives up. “Hoseok, Hoseokkie, hey calm down,”
“Oh my God, I knew it I knew it, I knew it!” Hoseok yells in the reverberating bathroom and jumps around in a moment of absurdity. He almost slips on the tiles before he holds on to the doorframe.
“Hoseokkie, please listen-”
“You listen, Son Hyunwoo, I’ve been having my suspicions for a while, mermaid boy, no wait, should I call you merman?”
Hyunwoo shrugs. “It’s gender neutral.”
“Okay, great, you sneaky mermaid boy, you absolute beautiful freak. How could you hide something this essential from me?” Hoseok waddles to the tub and kneels down, not caring how his jeans are getting soaked through.
Now that he’s closer, Hoseok notices the shimmering bright scales and the gills on Hyunwoo’s neck. Hyunwoo’s eyes birth sunflowers, for they glimmer in yellow streaks, glowing and pulsing with each blink. Hoseok takes his arm, traces with his fingertips the smooth scales.
“You’re gorgeous, holy shit Hyunwoo,” Hoseok says
Hyunwoo smiles sheepishly and his cheeks grow warmer, a dusty red. “You’re such a weird human, you should be more freaked out.”
“You are the weird one here, did you genuinely think you were doing a good job hiding your nature?”
Hyunwoo nods seriously, and Hoseok widens his eyes. “Well, I got bad news for you mermaid boy.”
Hoseok leaves the bathroom then and gives him the privacy to change back. Giddy and thrilled, Hoseok tries his best to make them tea and not spill boiling water over his shaky arms. He takes two mugs from the cabinet the same moment Hyunwoo emerges from the hallway with a towel over his neck.
Hoseok stares in wonder and Hyunwoo tilts his head with a soft smile. They sit down together on their small kitchen table, and Hoseok passes him a mug.
“Thank you, Seokkie,” Hyunwoo says.
Without thinking, Hoseok takes Hyunwoo’s free arm and runs his hand from Hyunwoo’s wrist to his bicep, and down again. He feels just the faintest scale ridges. Hoseok’s heart hammers in his chest. “You’re real, you’re really really real.” He lets out an obnoxious laugh then feels a horrid scare in his chest cavity, realization hitting home. “Will you have to kill me?” he asks in a weak voice.
Hyunwoo grins. “Maybe.”
Hoseok jerks from fright and almost spills his mug. He loses his balance from the sudden movement, falls back on his chair and knocks his head against hardwood.
“Jesus Christ Hoseok, I was joking.”
He blacks out.
And wakes up Sunday morning, to sunshine nibbling on his skin, a gentle breeze caressing his cheeks, and a headache with the intensity of a meditating monk. Hoseok groans in the empty room, groans a second time when he remembers Hyunwoo’s odd dark humor that almost cost him a life. He feels around and finds lime slices held together with a bandana scarf around his forehead.
Hyunwoo lies anchored by his right on the small bed, long legs draped over his.
“I hate you,” Hoseok says, his eyes lingering on the ceiling.
Hyunwoo tries to suppress a smile. “I’m sorry.”
“I can’t believe you. What kind of joke was that?”
“A fucked up one, I’m sorry, my kind excel at those.”
“I thought you were a mermaid, not a siren.”
“We’re distant relatives, so I did get some of that wicked blood.”
Hoseok turns his head on his silky pillow, and comes upon the view of a wide bare chest and soft humming sunlit eyes. Hyunwoo rests on his side propped up on an elbow. His golden skin shimmers with a glint of scales.
“You seduce sailors to their doom, too?” Hoseok asks.
“No, but the urge is there sometimes, with you at least,” Hyunwoo says.
Hoseok blushes grandly. “I’m not a sailor.”
“You’re a human, and you have ears, and enchanting hymns always work.”
“I’ve never heard you sing before.”
Hyunwoo shrugs with a smile. “Maybe one day.” He lifts off Hoseok’s bed and goes to rummage in his closet. Hoseok gets a nice view of his beautiful back muscles, shining like summer waves under a suffocating sun. Hyunwoo slips a hoodie over his head and changes from pajama pants to sweats.
“Going somewhere?” Hoseok asks.
“I have a shift on Sunday, remember?”
Hoseok isn’t even sure if he can still remember his name or how he looks like or what kind of value the universe holds or what the fuck he’s currently doing here with a creature of the folklore as his roommate. It’s absurd and living is absurd, and maybe dying wouldn’t have being that bad of a thing.
Maybe he’s already dead and this is the afterlife, but what kind of afterlife is the question now.
In his own mind bars, Hoseok doesn’t notice when Hyunwoo slips to the kitchen and brings with him a steaming tea mug. The sweet smell hits Hoseok like a nostalgic childhood dream, and he metaphorically weeps. Literally, he sits upright, ignoring the headache, sends Hyunwoo a flying kiss and takes the mug from him gratefully.
“Lemon verbena, smelt it on you when we first met,” Hyunwoo says.
Hoseok takes a sip and flies to Heaven. “How is that possible? I haven’t had it in years, since high school maybe.”
“I can smell memories.”
“Oh,” Hoseok says, takes another sip, flies a second time to Heaven.
“Yours smell of chrysanthemum and chamomile tea and lemon verbena. Sometimes I catch a waft of smoke and burning coals.”
That sobers him up.
Hyunwoo gently reaches behind Hoseok’s head to untie the scarf. The smell of seashore is so strong Hoseok can almost taste salt on his tongue.
Hyunwoo stacks up the shriveled lime slices on his hand before he puts them away on Hoseok’s bedside table. He runs careful fingers through Hoseok’s hair to shake up the sleeping strands. Hoseok sips from his childhood memories and leans into Hyunwoo’s touch.
“I’m really sorry Hoseok, I’m sorry I kept this from you and I’m sorry you had to find out this way,” Hyunwoo says, apprehensive, his eyes a lukewarm late-afternoon sun.
Hoseok smiles with ease. “It’s okay, we’ve only been roommates for four months, and you can’t just trust anyone with this secret. Just promise you won’t suck my soul dry while asleep and then we’ll be good as new.”
“Well, that’s something I can’t do, so rest assured,” Hyunwoo says, flicks him on the forehead, and Hoseok pouts into his mug.
“Don’t forget to buy my vitamins on your way back, mermaid boy. I’m almost out,” Hoseok says.
Hyunwoo grabs a snapback and his keys, sends Hoseok finger guns before he leaves, and just like that, the room stops smelling of the ocean, the sun dims behind window sills, the ordinary settles back in and Hoseok flops down on his mattress and sleeps the day off.
“Seok, Hoseokkie, sleepy head, wake up.”
“’mm mama, I don’t wanna go to school, pleeeese.”
A deep rumble fleets through his tendons and bumps into his bones, and Hoseok squeezes his plushie and groans a second time. Only, it’s not his plushie he’s holding, this feels hard, yet soft, like gelato maybe, like refrigerated butter, like-
“Those are my guts you’re hugging, bunny teeth.”
Hoseok hums appreciatively. He plunges his face in Hyunwoo’s thigh and rubs his cheeks against thin fabric. He smells the ocean again, and in the back of his mind are beach waves and starfish and a fever-inducing scorching sun.
He lifts his head to peer up at his hostage. Hyunwoo is looking at him with kind smiling eyes, his cheeks are slightly flushed, like dried rose petals, and he’s so warm, literally and figuratively, warm and gentle when he ruffles Hoseok’s dyed copper hair.
“Is it summer yet?” Hoseok asks.
“No, it’s spring,” Hyunwoo says.
“Um, weird, it feels like summer.”
They cook dinner together. Hoseok takes over the stove and Hyunwoo cuts vegetables. They navigate around the small space in silence, soft indie songs and something serene floating over them. Hoseok burns his finger from being too eager to taste the broth, and Hyunwoo tells him, you’re such a fool, before he buns his finger as well from being just as eager. Hoseok laughs until tears birth.
“How could you sleep the whole afternoon? What about your weaving sample you need to submit?” Hyunwoo asks from his spot on the small couch. Their room is big enough for two single beds, a couch and a desk where currently resides Hoseok’s laptop with Netflix displayed on the screen. Hoseok pouts and puts another season of Vampire Diaries.
“You’re underestimating me. I submitted it yesterday.”
Hyunwoo pokes his lips, and Hoseok almost bites him. He fumbles in his bowl of popcorn and throws one to the air, and Hyunwoo catches it with his mouth like a seal.
“Don’t you need to soak in salty water? I haven’t seen you run to the ocean yet,” Hoseok says. The couch is small, so naturally their thighs and shoulders are touching, and Hoseok indulges himself in the warmth. Nights are so chilly here away from his homeland. His mother’s knitted sweaters take up half of their wardrobes, and Hoseok was positively stricken when he’d learned how much Hyunwoo loves to wear those sweaters with him (he’d made the mistake of telling his mother because the next week a new batch arrived at their doorstep).
“It’s fine, it’s not like I’m gonna wheeze to death from lack of oxygen or something,” Hyunwoo says, eyes on the screen.
“Won’t you dry out? Won’t your scales fall off?”
“I’m not a fish, Hoseokkie.”
“Well, duh, you’re a mermaid, a creature of the deep sea. How did you even get legs? Did you have to sacrifice something?”
Hyunwoo shrugs beside him, a subtle motion. “No, not really, we’re like, versatile. I’ve made it very clear to my parents that I wanted to live on land, and they didn’t object.”
Hoseok nods, opens his mouth for more prodding, but Hyunwoo claps a hand on lips and points to the screen where Elena is currently making out with Damen. “The best part.”
Hoseok rolls his eyes good-naturedly. He leans on Hyunwoo, eats his popcorn and hears the murmur of distant tides.
Hoseok was in need of a roommate.
Hoseok was in need of a roommate because his previous one moved in with her girlfriend and Hoseok whined at her a whole day for leaving him alone, ‘I thought this was wlw and mlm solidarity, traitor.’
Heeyeon, delicate paper doll with abs of steel Heeyeon, shushed her childhood best friend before going right back to her girlfriend who was checking in with her through the phone. “Yes, babe that’s all of it, I’ll be there in ten, love you.”
She hung up and jabbed with her socked foot at the armadillo ball rolling around the hallway in big fat tears.
“Stop crying, we can’t all stay single, someone had to make the sacrifice.”
ouch
“I’ve known you for twenty years, when I was still in the womb. She’s only known you for four,” Hoseok lamented and slammed into her shins. Heeyeon fell on her butt and grabbed him by the collar. Hoseok choked and fretted around until she took his cheeks and started wiping his tears with her sleeves.
“Don’t judge, my soul is weak and my tears are an unending stream.” Hoseok sniffled.
“Crying is manly though,” Heeyeon said. “And it’s healthy too, see, your eyes look like they have stars in them.” She smiled and pinched his cheeks. “But don’t tell auntie I’ve made you cry, she might stop sending kimchi and knitted scarves my way.”
They giggle like it’s middle school again, when Heeyeon used to beat up his bullies and get in trouble for it.
“Write me letters and I’ll tell her to double the doze,” Hoseok said.
Heeyeon scoffed. “Easy, I’ll swarm you with texts day and night.”
“No, I meant handwritten letters, tangible nice smelling papers that will showcase your undying love for me.” Hoseok grinned and Heeyeon started to protest, but the fight died down before it could breach past her lips.
She sighed. “Fine, I’ll write you once a week.”
“And please, spray it with your perfume too, you smell like mom sometimes, it’s very comforting.”
Heeyeon slapped his arm. Hoseok laughed in hehehes and hahahas and Heeyeon joined, just as loud, their neighbors contemplating calling the cops for the umpteenth time.
Hoseok helped her with packing her last suitcase, and when they stood together by the doorway, with sunshine streaking them through the opened window and a gentle breeze filling the half empty house, Hoseok let the stream loose again and sniffled in a pout.
“Hani, Hyoni, you’re really leaving me.”
She took him in a hug, tight like the grip of a gladiator, and Hoseok wheezed and cried at the same time.
“It’s only ten minutes from here, you can always come visit,” she said into his shoulder.
“Hyojin hates me,” Hoseok said thickly.
“No, she doesn’t.”
“She keeps calling me twink and twunk interchangeably, never a hunk.”
Heeyeon chuckled. “Well, she’s not wrong.”
“And that time she stole a pendant from me. I won it fairly in that claw machine.”
“It was plastic, Seokkie.”
“Don’t care, I cried blood to get it.”
Heeyeon stepped back, her eyes glassy. She adjusted her backpack over her shoulder, the suitcase in her hand and Hoseok waved her goodbye. But before closing the door behind her, Heeyeon turned around, something mischievous dancing in her irises, and said, “I actually found you a new roommate, I’ll text you details later, bye bye.”
Hoseok just stared at the peephole minutes after the door closed.
It was with thunderstorms and grey crying skies that Hyunwoo stepped through the threshold. Literally.
Rain was punching holes into the asphalt, intense and grim clouds blinding the city and halting activities. Hoseok’s classes were cancelled, so he spent his morning trying oil paint again and toying with colors to find the perfect warm peach for sand and the perfect gentle blue for a sunny clear sky. It wasn’t schoolwork, Hoseok just wanted to lose himself in something other than his loneliness and the whispering ghost cluttering about the kitchen cabinets. Winter is his least favorite season, and the thought of summer brings him comfort, so immersing himself in this tableau was the only way.
Hyunwoo walked inside dripping like a kitchen rag, and Hoseok, horrified, took the semi-wet box and suitcase from him and rushed him into the bathroom.
Oh Jesus, we just met but you’re going to catch a cold, please hurry, get into the tub, I’ll bring you a towel, were Hoseok’s first words to him.
Hyunwoo was wide-eyed throughout the whole thing, and Hoseok took the care to bring him a towel and lend him some of his own clothes.
So many things went over Hoseok’s head at that time, for in his rush, he hadn’t noticed the peculiar way Hyunwoo’s skin shimmered as if a bucket of glitter was dumped over him, neither did he witness the blue tail surging up the moment he’d closed the bathroom door to give Hyunwoo his privacy.
Hoseok was so wrapped in his head at the new changes and the thunder ripping the skies open, his chest constricting because he was missing Heeyeon already and it had only been 24 hours.
Hyunwoo walked back in with Hoseok’s dinosaur-themed sweater on. Thank you, were Hyunwoo’s first words to him.
Something about his smile hit Hoseok like an expensive gucci sandal, something warm and beating sunshine on that one rainy morning, and Hoseok didn’t mind change anymore.
The day after, Hyunwoo came down with a cold while unpacking his (mostly) dry textbooks. Hyunwoo had shown fever like a vulnerable newborn, his flushed skin tender and warm to the touch, sheen of sweat dotting his forehead, half lidded eyes and body curled tight on his bed. He trembled under piles and piles of blankets, and Hoseok watched on with a heavy heart by the doorway.
Classes were still cancelled with storms terrorizing the city. Hoseok took his umbrella and coat, and ran to the pharmacy. He then ran to the grocery store to pick up some vegetables, teeth chattering from drenched thighs, but his resolve stubborn as a rock.
He nursed Hyunwoo back to health, and they bounded like long lost half-brothers.
The first time Hoseok was met with anything slightly out of the ordinary, was the day he came back from classes a little earlier than usual, his history professor out of town for his sister’s wedding. Hoseok was extremely tired that day, so food and sleep were the things on his mind, his arms achy from hours in the studio with his weaving machine.
Hoseok, while dragging his limbs to the kitchen for a cup of water, came upon his roommate perched up by the window, his wide shoulders hunched over something Hoseok couldn’t quite glimpse. There were also soft murmurs in the background, and Hoseok strained his ears to catch more of that melody that sounded like the burble of rivers traveling along their beds. Hyunwoo was standing tall and taut and Hoseok saw something black and tiny like a dot dancing on the sill and fluttering wings and tweeting in earnest.
Birds.
Hyunwoo was moving his lips, and Hoseok-
Hoseok attributed it to his exhaustion and his worn out brain because, what the hell, Hyunwoo wasn’t talking to birds, this was not a ghibli film.
So Hoseok just walked past Hyunwoo and accidently impaled his hip into the sharp edge of the table. The whole building heard him screech into the next millennium because this was worse than burning his hand on the stove; this was akin to stubbing multiple toes all at once, like some sick experimentation for the jobless folks, the pain stretching long and tight from his hipbone to the rest of him.
Hyunwoo then snapped out of his reverie and the birds took off to the windy sky.
“Hoseokkie, you’re home already?” Hyunwoo said, bewildered. Hoseok was still leaning on the table, his eyes scrunched shut. Hyunwoo came around and Hoseok latched onto him like some affection-starved lizard.
“You didn’t hear the door?” Hoseok heaved out through gritted teeth.
“No, I was, I was-” Hyunwoo trailed off, but Hoseok was in too much pain he couldn’t even properly walk.
Hyunwoo helped ease him into his bed and told him he’ll get take-out before grabbing Hoseok's jacket and keys and fleeting the scene. Hoseok watched the ceiling, grabbed his dragon plushie and buried his face in his pillow.
He woke up to gentle prodding by his shoulder, the smell of food awakening the hunger in his hollowed tummy. Hoseok sat up with a wince, and a quick look below his waistband told him an ugly bruise was about to bloom.
Sweet. Just his kink.
Hoseok sighed.
They immigrated to their couch and Hyunwoo took the time to rearrange the cluttered desk and open the food containers. They usually didn’t eat there, precious school papers were always at risk of a stain or two. Hoseok was famished though and they let it slide for now.
“Does it hurt still?” Hyunwoo asked around a mouthful of onion rings, A Silent Voice playing on Hoseok’s laptop.
Hoseok nodded mournfully, two dumplings filling his chubby cheeks.
“How did it happen? Usually I’m the clumsy one in this household,” Hyunwoo said with a chuckle.
Hoseok swallowed and his cheek deflated like a sad birthday balloon. His knee jerked when Hyunwoo put a big warm hand on his bruised hip.
“What are you doing?” Hoseok said, alarmed.
Hyunwoo waved him off and then hopped down the couch and crouched by his legs. Hoseok forgot about his hunger and his dumplings and his appetizing ramen, his flush creeping up his neck when Hyunwoo grasped both his thighs in a tight grip, plump lips extremely close to his crotch.
“Wait, wait wait wait wait wait wait, Hyunwoo wait!”
“Stop moving, you’ll knee me in the face.”
Hyunwoo started peeling down Hoseok’s sweats, just an inch of bruised flesh resurfacing like a submerged flamingo float. Hoseok colored pink and red, and when Hyunwoo kissed his bruise, once, twice, kissed it tenderly and mouthed at his skin, Hoseok felt the blood rushing to that sliver of flesh, his heart pulsing wildly by his throat and the movie momentarily forgotten.
“There, good as new,” Hyunwoo said happily, pulled up Hoseok’s pants and went back to his onion rings.
It took a while for Hoseok to compose himself and for his skin to cool down to a regular temperature. He grabbed a pillow and threw it at Hyunwoo’s head. “You are so weird, stop joking around like this.”
“I wasn’t joking-”
“No more talking, I’m hungry,” Hoseok said and stuffed his face with chicken parmesan.
Hyunwoo smiled into his palm. The moment passed.
An hour and half later, the credits rolled up and Hoseok cried all the tears, wept into Hyunwoo’s shoulder and barely noticed the lack of achiness in his hip that seemed to have evaporated like magic dust.
“You’re such a baby, it’s just an animated movie, Hoseokkie come on,” Hyunwoo said and rubbed Hoseok’s back with his big bear paws. He was so goddamn warm, and he smelled like a fresh dive in the sea.
Hoseok shook his head and he sniffled. “Hyunwoo, I’m so saaaad,”
“Well, no shit.”
“Shut up shut up, no sarcasm allowed, you’re supposed to comfort me.”
Hoseok remembered Shouko’s bullies, remembered his own bullies from elementary school, and fresh tears rolled down his cheeks, more pain to his sobs. Hyunwoo hugged him, carried him to his bed and slipped in beside him. They’d already shared a bed couple times before, so this hardly counted as something outside their comfort zone.
“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have suggested that movie,” Hyunwoo said. Hoseok pawed at his sweater like a kitten, and Hyunwoo took Hoseok’s hands to fit them together with his, huffed gently at Hoseok’s red face and bopped his noise. They went to sleep together with a quick reminder from Hoseok to set their alarm on time.
The bruise disappeared the next morning.
The peculiar never stopped, Hyunwoo’s weird tendencies never ceased. If anything, they only gained momentum and prospered from then on. Hoseok would wake up to a couple more birds everyday tapping with their beaks at the closed window, and Hyunwoo nowhere to be seen. Their flat would mist in hazy fogs, and Hoseok would even find seashells hidden beneath his pillow, or on certain occasions, a trail of salt circling his bed as if he were a vicious phantom kept at bay.
Hyunwoo is so bad at camouflaging himself between fellow humans, and Hoseok can’t help but be concerned for his unassuming ass.
Hoseok crosses the street and enters the Chinese restaurant where slender man and magpie await him.
Minhyuk thrusts one finger into Hoseok’s chest, and it bounces back. “You are mother-effing late.”
Hyungwon is resting his head on his palm, seeming bored out of his mind. Hoseok rolls his eyes, removes his coat and folds it on the seat beside him.
Minhyuk doesn’t relent. “You’re paying 60%, Hyungwonnie and I will be sharing the rest.”
Hoseok chortles unironically. “Fuck no, I’m poor.”
“Suddenly I can’t hear. Hyungwon, back me up here.” Minhyuk elbows the wobbly figure floating about the space like a memory.
Hyungwon makes noises of protest somewhere deep in his chest. “We have coupons, stop fighting.”
They peer at the menu and decide on the regular. The cute waitress with pigtails comes bouncing to take their orders, and Minhyuk gives her the greasy wink. He turns to look at him then, curious and obnoxious with mirth. “You have a daddy anyways, why usurp us of the measly amount of coupons we have?”
Hoseok gives him a look of despair. “What are you talking about?”
Minhyuk shrugs and elbows Hyungwon again. Hyungwon pretends to be annoyed, but it falls flat and Hoseok knows he’s on board with Minhyuk’s schemes.
“You know, that big guy I’ve seen walking into your place.”
Hoseok takes a deep breath. “Minhyukkie, he is not my sugar daddy, he is my roommate, and we’ve been living together for four months. I’ve whined to you about this for a whole damn week.”
Minhyuk shrugs again. “Doesn’t mean he can’t be two things at the same time.”
“Oh my God.” Hoseok throws a crumpled napkin at his head. “You’re gross.”
Minhyuk opens his mouth again, but a ping interjects them and silence descends. Hyungwon takes his phone, stares at his screen for a good two minutes, slams his phone on the table and hides his face in his hands. He blushes like something out of a Shoujo Manga. Hoseok and Minhyuk fight to get to the phone first.
“Jesus.”
“Holy shit.”
Jooheon sits grinning wide with two adorable kittens napping in his arms, his dimples dragging in two lines down his cheeks, his hair messy and disheveled, domestic vibes hitting them like a cement truck. There’s a caption attached to the picture:
Babies are home, can’t wait to introduce them to their other dad. Drive home safe, love you ♡♡
“Yo, what the fuck? What k-drama is this?” Minhyuk grouches grumpily.
“Suddenly I want a boyfriend,” Hoseok says.
“Suddenly I want to die,” Minhyuk says.
“Shut it party pooper, your saltiness is getting tangible.”
Hyungwon’s face grows redder, and Hoseok sneakily snaps a picture.
“I specifically told him to wait for me at the shelter, why is he so loud? How am I to get through another four hours of classes? How am I to survive this crisis?”
They squeeze Hyungwon between them on one side of the booth. The waitress peers at them curiously.
“Deep breaths, deep breaths,” Minhyuk instructs.
Hoseok tries to reach for his hands and Hyungwon slaps them away. “I’m not seizing up.”
“It looks like you’re having a heatstroke,” Hoseok says.
“I’m not having a heatstroke, you single folks need to learn how relationships work.”
ouch
Hoseok and Minhyuk round on him with punches to the ribs, because that’s a sensitive topic you inconsiderate duck lips.
Their food finally arrives and Hoseok returns to his initial position where his crumpled coat stares at him in a sad heap on the floor. He dusts it off and places it on his thighs.
Hoseok reaches for his fork, then,
“But Hoseokkie does have a sugar daddy, so that must definitely count for somethi–”
“Minhyuk I swear I’ll skin you.”
Hoseok comes home later than usual, enters the house and finds the lights out and gentle humming drifting in the air. He tosses his bag on the bed, switches shoes for slippers and bursts open the door to the bathroom.
Hyunwoo jumps in surprise and some water splashes over the tub. He holds his chest, as if concerned his heart will come out any second now and resign from its mission to keep him alive. It smells so good, the steam clinging to Hoseok’s skin and intensifying the warmth in his bones. Hyunwoo’s blue tail remains suspended at the edge of the tub, and Hoseok reaches with grabby hands.
“Careful, you might cut yourself,” Hyunwoo says.
“You’re not a shark,” Hoseok says and kneels on the wet tiles.
“My scales are sharp.”
“You won’t hurt me.”
“’Course I won’t hurt you, but you can still hurt yourself.”
Hoseok shrugs. He puts his palm on the tip of the tail –oh my god it’s so slimy, Hyunwoo what the fuck– feels the rough scales, drives carefully his hand up the shifting sky blue until he comes upon softer scales that make up Hyunwoo’s bare torso. Hoseok studies the skin carefully, and he can’t help the look of absolute wonder at the shimmer splattered beneath the epidermis.
“Are you by chance a vampire?” Hoseok asks.
“I don’t grow fangs, if that’s what you’re asking.”
“No, I meant, the Robert Pattinson kind of vampire, you know, the beautiful glittering type.”
Hyunwoo quirks an eyebrow, smiles just the tiniest bit. “Vampires used to exist, actually.”
Hoseok opens his eyes wide. “Really?”
“Yeah, they went extinct hundred years ago, the last true blood burnt at the stake by their sworn enemies.”
“Let me guess, the werewolves were their sworn enemies.”
Hyunwoo shakes his head. “Oh no, they were titans, their sworn enemies were titans, big bodied with arms like tree trunks. They got crushed by titans to bits because they were disturbing the equilibrium of the food chain by sucking too many humans to death.”
Hoseok’s eyebrows almost disappear into his hairline. “You’re making this up. I refuse to believe vampires used to roam this earth.”
Hyunwoo shrugs. “Well, I exist, don’t I?”
Hoseok pales at the idea of any survivors lurking around still, blood suckers snapping his neck in half and drinking him until the last drop. Hyunwoo touches his arm and Hoseok startles to his feet with a yelp, slips on the wet tiles and lands in a painful heap on Hyunwoo, his knee catching on the edge of the tub and his elbow landing home in Hyunwoo’s side. Hyunwoo gasps and Hoseok groans at the shot of pure agony in his kneecap.
Hyunwoo holds his upper arms and steadies him in the small tub. “I thought I was the clumsy one here, what’s happening?”
Hoseok is leaning fully on him, his cheek squished into Hyunwoo’s shoulder. “We live together, what did you expect?”
He’s soaked through now, his jeans tight and wet and gross. Hoseok sniffles because these are his favorite pair of jeans (they make his ass look nice), and he has intended for a couple more wears. He makes to stand but Hyunwoo straps him down with an arm around his waist.
“Let’s cuddle,” Hyunwoo says.
Hoseok huffs. “Stop joking.”
“I mean it.”
“Wait until it’s bed time. I’m wet now and I need to change, and no, not in that way you horny fish.”
Hyunwoo laughs and Hoseok feels the tremors in his teeth. “I haven’t even said anything.”
“No need, I can hear you loud and clear in my brain.”
They shift around in the cramped space until it feels comfortable enough, Hoseok’s back to Hyunwoo’s chest, their legs and tail flapping in the air. Hyunwoo’s arms circle his midriff to secure him, and Hoseok wonders if this particular scenario is a common occurrence between roommates. His heart feels slightly jittery, slightly skittish.
“By the way, that vampire story is a legend, something to scare younglings from going up the shore, thought you might want to know about it,” Hyunwoo says.
Hoseok absolutely did not want to know about it. “Thanks for keeping me in your mind.”
“Of course, anything for my one and only roommate. Your hair smells really nice, I hope you’re not hiding that shampoo from me.”
Hoseok rolls his eyes. He points with his chin at the baby pink bottle in the corner. “It’s the same one Heeyeon used to buy.” Hoseok pauses because something just dawned on him. “I forgot to ask but, how did you come to know about Heeyeon?”
Hyunwoo adjusts his arms to hold him closer. “She’s dating my sister.”
Hoseok frowns. “Your sister? You have a sister?”
“Yes, my sister Hyojin.”
Hoseok’s eyes almost pop like a balloon. “Hyojin is your sister?”
“Yes?” Hyunwoo says with skepticism.
Hoseok feels like he just got marched on by a battalion, the furry licking him like flames, consuming him to his hair follicles. “So what’s you’re saying is that she knew all along.”
oh shit, Hyunwoo breathes out.
Hoseok wrenches Hyunwoo’s arms away and scrambles up to his feet. He leaves the bathroom, not caring how everything is getting soaked beneath his feet, and releases a loud gurgled scream.
hoseok >>>> hani (9:18 pm)
you are one evil woman
and I hope hyojin noona whispers in your ear how awful you are every night
“Hoseokkie please, hear me out.”
“Go away, I don’t want to see your face.”
“I have nowhere to go, this is my room too.”
“I don’t care, you’re all awful for singling me out like this.” Hoseok buries his face in his pillow and screams again.
Hyunwoo raps at the door. “Stop screaming, they might call the cops on us, and I’m still butt naked.”
Hoseok smiles despite himself. He unglues his body from the mattress and shuffles to the door. He opens it just a tiny fraction, and there he stands, a towel wrapped around his waist, goosebumps covering his flushed golden skin. Hoseok feels some pity.
“Please, let me in?” he says in a small voice.
Hoseok wills the smile away. “What are you offering in return?”
Hyunwoo sighs. “A week of house chores.”
“Make it two.”
“A week and a half.”
“Deal.”
Hoseok opens the door wider, and he gets immediately tackled to the floor by a hot naked roommate pinning his arms and choking him with one hand, Hyunwoo’s thighs squishing his.
Hoseok wheezes and his adam’s apple bobs from restriction. “What are you doing?”
Hyunwoo smiles down at him with glowing eyes. “Not killing you, don’t worry.”
Hoseok starts having his doubts when Hyunwoo puts some pressure behind his grip. “I can’t breathe, let go.”
“What are you offering in return?” Hyunwoo throws his words back at him. There’s a familiar voice in his mind that keeps giving him reality checks, blaring something like, yo he’s naked and choking you WHAT THE FUCK THIS IS WILD, and Hoseok shushes his inner Minhyuk with a kiss to the cheek and a slap to the nape.
He coughs, and the pressure on his windpipe sends tingles down his spine, coils in his abdomen like a ball python, tight and heavy. “I could take you out for dinner.”
Hyunwoo looks on, thoughtful. Hoseok’s eyes move down from protruding collarbones to smooth bronzed chest with a hint of scales, to somewhere lower still. Somehow, the towel sits unfazed around Hyunwoo’s hips, the knot keeping together Hoseok’s sanity, oh god it has been a while, hasn’t it?
Hoseok gulps. “Also, I could offer to spoon you for a whole week.”
Hyunwoo quirks his eyebrows. He eases his hold around Hoseok’s throat and releases his wrists completely. Instead, he takes Hoseok’s hand and twines their fingers together, straddling him. “You love getting spooned though.”
“I’ll live.”
“Make it two dates then, and a trip to the beach once it’s warm enough, I’d love to drown you.”
“I’d love to see you try, mermaid boy.”
Hyunwoo laughs, so bright and high, his cheeks coloring in peach, and Hoseok gets a sudden urge to just… kiss him.
But because he has some semblance of self-restrain, Hoseok kisses his sweet cheek instead, puts his lips to the corner of Hyunwoo’s mouth, drags his mouth away just as fast, and the hand holding his tightens.
Hoseok’s eyes land on his dragon plushie, smiling eerily at him, scolding him silently, promising him some whipping on the way, you’re such an idiot my stupid son you better apologize or I’ll breathe fire into your hair.
Hoseok clears his throat to say something, anything. Hyunwoo beats him to it when he lets go of his hand to grab his face and kiss him on the lips. Long and close mouthed and warm, so warm Hoseok leans into it in a second. Hyunwoo smiles into the kiss, and his contagious giggle hits Hoseok hard.
“This is how my kin greet each other,” Hyunwoo says, pecks his lips a final time, and gets to his feet.
Hoseok puts a hand around his flushed neck. “This is the biggest lie you’ve ever told.”
Hyunwoo shrugs, and when he drops the towel, Hoseok averts his eyes and buries them in his sleeve.
“You can ask my sister, if you want.”
Hoseok hums. Seconds later, he turns around to face Hyunwoo who’s currently slipping a cotton sweater over his head, his pink pajama pants baggy and not clinging to him like second skin for once. Hyunwoo catches his eye, and his face softens into a small smile, genuine and looking like a missing piece from the sun, like an integral part to the center of the solar system.
The room is drowning in sea air. Hoseok offers a smile back.
He'd been so oblivious.
hoseok >>>> minhyuk, hyungwon (11:27 pm)
what do you call that thing
that thing that is a crush
but also not quite
like when you want someone but also don’t because friendships are at stake
and commitment can be scary af
and and
;-;
minhyuk (11:29 pm)
deep breaths bunny
did you guys bang?
hoseok (11:29 pm)
what, no
we didn’t bang
we kissed though
just once and, hear me out
IT WASN’T AWKWARD THANK FUCK
hyungwon (11:30 pm)
lucky bastard
the first time we kissed honey wouldn’t even look at me in the eyes for a whole WEEK
minhyuk (11:30 pm)
thats because youre stiff as a twig
youre the epitome of awkwardness
youre what professionals point at and say ‘do not be like this, do better’
me, I am the professionals
hyungwon (11:30 pm)
keep talking shit minhyuk
that saltiness won’t get you anywhere
it sure won’t get you a partner
minhyuk (11:31 pm)
you can choke on my phallus shaped cactus
hoseok (11:31 pm)
guys
crisis hotline, hello
minhyuk (11:32 pm)
chop his arm off and fill a bottle with his blood and go to the nearest witch and ask her whether its gonna work out or not
or you could, you know, ask him out
hoseok (11:32 pm)
i’ll go with the second option, thank you
hyungwon (11:33 pm)
you could test the waters for now
hold his hand on the streets or smt
drop some hints here and there
minhyuk (11:33 pm)
wonnie this is not a fuckign kdrama
sappy fukkk
hyungwon (11:33 pm)
minhyuk shut your annoying single ass: challenge failed
hoseok (11:34 pm)
but we already
hold hands
in public
…
hyungwon (11:34 pm)
JMANYYTEKK
U SERIOUS ???
Minhyuk (11:35 pm)
please don’t tell me you shower together
hoseok (11:35 pm)
yes we do that too
because we wake up at the same time and there’s only one shower and he doesn’t mind when i join so yeah, we do shower together
minhyuk (11:37 pm)
i am: logging off
goodnight
hoseok (11:38 pm)
hey what’s wrong with showering together
bros do that with their bros all the time
please enlighten me i’m lost
hyungwon (11:39 pm)
you sweet summer child
hoseok (11:40 pm)
:((
“Congratulations, I thought you’d never guess,” Heeyeon chirps on the phone.
“I’m glad you got a good laugh out of this, you evil witch,” Hoseok says mournfully, pencil in mouth and clattered papers swarming his bed.
Heeyeon lets out another screeching sound. “Did you seriously think I would’ve just blurted that out to you, like, ‘Hey right, about your roommate, he’s half-human half-fish, and he eats sailors alive sometimes, please take care of him’?”
“He doesn’t eat sailors, he told me so,” Hoseok grumbles.
“That’s beside the point, how did you find out anyway?”
Hoseok drops his pencil and walks to the window where sparrows stare at him curiously. He pats one on the head. “One time I came home early from classes, and I needed to pee so bad I just barged into the bathroom uninvited, and the rest is history.”
“Oh my God Hoseokkie, I thought I raised you better.” She tusks.
“I almost peed my pants, okay. It was a onetime thing. And it’s not like he was subtle about it, he talks to birds Hyoni, and like, swallows salt dry, cups of it.”
“Hyojin does that too.”
“What the hell? How do they not choke on it?”
Heeyeon chuckles, her tone lower this time. “The gills help, she told me about it.”
“Is her tail blue, too?” Hoseok asks. He stumbles on a stray cable and the sparrows startle away to the clear sky. He pouts.
“No, hers is an emerald green. Sometimes, we sneak outside campus to the beach, and I watch her strip and dive and surge again to the shore, shake the water off, and it’s just, wow, I am so totally, painfully…gay.”
Hoseok laughs so suddenly his throat burns.
“I thank Jesus everyday for women. I love women, Hoseokkie.”
“And I love men, Hyoni.”
“Then go get yours.”
Hoseok halts at that. He hears a loud wail outside and finds the child of a neighbor throwing a tantrum on the pavement, his poor mother trying to coax him into silence.
“Mines?”
“Don’t play the dummy card, everyone and their dog knows what’s up.”
“Well, I sure as hell don’t,” Hoseok says. The child accepts greedily a lollipop before his mother takes his hand and drags him back inside the building. He feels warm in his pull-over. Too warm maybe. Heeyeon is taking her sweet time to respond.
“Not sure if you’re being deliberately ignorant or if you’re just not ready for the hot scalding truth, but you know where to find me if you need some pep talk with the swig of one or two beers.”
Hoseok jumps back on his bed, and the papers flutter in the air. “You don’t even like beer.”
“Oh right, champagne then. Noona will hear you loud and clear.”
Hoseok scoffs. “Stop aging yourself, we’re only one year apart, old hag.”
“Ungrateful brat. Love you, take care.”
“Love you too.”
Some time passes, and Hoseok gets caught in midterms and project deadlines and a general feeling of doom, something murky twisting in his veins and coloring him grey and blue, something unexplainably forlorn and Hoseok cries silently in the bathroom to unpack some of his anxiety and wash it down the drain. When he gets caught in loops of self-doubt, unsatisfied with his weaving pieces or paintings, he goes to hang out with Hyunwoo’s birds and pretends to know of their language, pretends to be included in their soft discussions of nature, or maybe of a spotted centipede for dinner. Hoseok whistles back.
“Hoseokkie, you’re home?” Hyunwoo calls from the front door.
“I’m here,” Hoseok says and turns from the window at Hyunwoo’s shuffling socked feet. He throws a tangerine at him and Hoseok barely catches it.
“I thought they were out of season?” Hoseok says, turns the fruit around in his palm.
Hyunwoo grins. “I’ve heard you sing about tangerines in your sleep. I scavenged the market for them and I found these. They cost me a lung, but that’s okay, it’s for a good cause.”
“Really?” Hoseok croaks, voice a little broken, but also, some mending taking place inside his ribcage, an act so simple, so kind, so unfairly misplaced on this timeline because his insides are still tender, and Hoseok absolutely dissolves into tears.
“Hey, hey hey hey, what’s wrong?” Hyunwoo panics, drops the plastic bag, runs to him and crouches beside him. “Hoseok, please tell me what’s wrong?”
“I pricked my finger,” Hoseok lies.
“Let me see.” Hyunwoo takes his left hand, his right one still holding the tangerine close to him, inspects it carefully, or at least pretends to, and Hoseok grasps Hyunwoo’s own hand before he collapses forward onto Hyunwoo’s shoulder, their tangled fingers between their chests.
“Are you by chance an angel?” Hoseok says in tears.
Hyunwoo huffs gently. “Is this a pickup line?”
“It could be, but it’s kind of greasy, don’t you think?”
“No, I can feel my heart fluttering, here, feel it too.” Hyunwoo turns Hoseok’s hand palm up and puts it right above his ribcage, right above his quickening heartbeat, thrumming, pulsating, and Hoseok is grateful for the existence of one Son Hyunwoo.
“That’s because I frightened you with my dramatic fall,” he says with a sniffle.
“It could be that too.”
Hoseok’s lips tilt slightly, and he worms his face in the space between Hyunwoo’s shoulder and neck, smells the familiar mist and hears the familiar waves, lets his hand travel to Hyunwoo’s lower back and peers sadly at the abandoned tangerines rolling around the floor.
“How are your marine studies going?” he asks into Hyunwoo’s shoulder.
“Tomorrow’s my exam in oceanography, and I’m scared shitless,” Hyunwoo says.
Hoseok smiles fully now, presses closer to him. “You’ll do great, I’m sure.”
“As so will you, I’m double sure, the birds whispered it to me.”
He’s really, really grateful.
“Glad to hear it.”
When midterms pass and deadlines come and go, Hoseok’s body gives out and he falls to a pretty serious fever.
The thing about Hoseok and fevers is that it’s a complicated relationship.
The thing about Hoseok and fevers is that buried childhood nightmares resurface, break through the cracks, infest his delirious mind, terrorize him to the point of tears.
So what Hoseok does is lean his chest on Hyunwoo’s broad back, big arms around Hyunwoo, puts his nose to Hyunwoo’s neck and tries to get as much of that sweet sea air as possible. Meanwhile, Hyunwoo sits reading a book titled Silent Spring for one of his classes, something about the dangers of pesticides and its effects on the health of their dear planet earth, destroying ecosystems and ruining lives, plunging the world into further despair. It leaves Hoseok feeling worse than usual.
“I told you to stop reading over my shoulder, this is not a fun book,” Hyunwoo says as he turns to the next page.
Hoseok sniffles with watery eyes. “I’m bored and sick, stop being mean.”
“See, now you’ve made yourself cry again,” Hyunwoo says, uses a small piece of paper to mark the page and reaches with his long arm the bedside table to pass Hoseok tissues.
Hoseok unglues himself from Hyunwoo and accepts them gratefully. “Why are humans so terrible to nature? What’s the point of us anyway? Why can’t you just read Harry Potter instead?”
Hyunwoo turns around to face him, all kind eyes and soft smiles, and all Hoseok wants is to snuggle. “Harry Potter won’t help me pass the year. Lie down Soekkie, your fever is still high.”
Hoseok nods, lies back down with the grace of rusty doorknob and daydreams of better days, of fever-less days, of cuddling-with-hyunwoo-and-kissing-his-rose-petal-cheeks days. Hyunwoo puts a damp cool cloth on his forehead and adjusts the blanket around his trembling skin.
“Do I smell of smoke?” Hoseok asks, and when Hyunwoo sits beside him, he takes Hyunwoo’s hand in both his, brings it close to his chest.
“You smell of baby fever,” Hyunwoo says.
“I’m twenty.”
“You smell of baby fever and lemon verbena and a tiny bit of honey.”
Hoseok laughs. He holds Hyunwoo’s hand tighter. “So, I don’t reek of smoke?”
“No, there’s just a waft.”
Hoseok hums. “So then, can I call you my significant other from now on, because all I can think about is kissing you and kissing your pretty lips and your warm cheeks, and-”
“Jesus,” Hyunwoo says, and makes to stand, “wait for me here, I’ll get the thermometer.”
Hoseok starts sobbing. “Are you rejecting me? Is that a rejection? Am I really that bad?”
“No, no no no, don’t cry, that’s not what I meant.” Hyunwoo kisses his hand and looks at him with so much concern in his eyes. “You’re an amazing person, anyone would want to be with you.”
“But I want you Hyunwoo, not just anyone else,” Hoseok says weakly.
“Fine, I can be your significant other, and you can kiss me all you want, just let me get the thermometer, I think your fever might have gotten worse.”
Hoseok still doesn’t let go. “Why are you talking to me like a child? I’m not a child.”
“Of course you’re not a child, you’re the most beautiful man I’ve ever laid eyes on,” Hyunwoo says sincerely.
Hoseok’s eyes almost immediately light up. “Okay, okay, I love you so much, my gorgeous significant other, please take care of me.”
Hyunwoo looks like he just swallowed a rock. Swiftly, he leaves the room and comes back not even half a minute later with the precious thermometer and a large cup of water. He pressures Hoseok into drinking it whole before he measures his temperature.
Hyunwoo whistles. “39.4°C, Hoseokkie this is bad.”
“Am I gonna die?”
“No, but I might need to get you some ibuprofen.”
Hyunwoo quickly changes the cloth that has gotten very warm in the span of five minutes, wears his jacket and slips shoes on, pink pajamas pants and all. He halts when Hoseok beckons him over.
Hoseok takes him by surprise when he presses his fever-laden lips to Hyunwoo’s, kiss tender and brief, but sweet all the same.
“Goodbye kiss, stay safe,” Hoseok says with a giggle, then passes out.
“Oh God, did that really really happen?”
Hyunwoo’s laugh carries outside the window and disturbs the sleeping neighbor child. “Yeah, you even cried when you thought I rejected you.”
Hoseok almost melts from mortification. He hides his face in his palms and groans his shame away, or at least tries to. This is bad, the fates are truly cruel.
“It’s okay, you were cute,” Hyunwoo says, and when Hoseok peers through the gaps between his knuckles, he spots the Hyunwoo-smile he’d build shrines for, that one wherein the telltales of sea mist tickle his skin and the crisp breeze fills his lungs and usurp him of the Not So Good Feelings. He’s still warm to the touch, but his fever is significantly down, and he’s fully conscious now.
“Thank you for saving my life. I appreciate it,” he says, turns to look at the few stars keeping the moon company, saving it from another lonely night. It occurs to him that he hasn’t felt that way in a while.
“I’ve hardly done anything,” Hyunwoo says.
“Oh sure, being humble again. You should try boasting a bit more.”
Hyunwoo smiles a different way. “Fine, if it’s okay with you, I’ll just boast to the world about how much you wanted to kiss my sweet lips and my sweet cheeks-”
“Wait, wait wait, not that, absolutely not that, I had no brain to mouth filter at the time, please don’t expose me.” Hoseok panics and shushes him with a hand around his mouth.
Hyunwoo’s eyes crinkle and Hoseok panics again and kisses him, but before he could step back, Hyunwoo takes hold of his waist to keep him close, grabs his chin, tilts it up and almost immediately deepens the kiss, slides their lips together in a smooth pattern, kisses him long and gentle like slow dancing high school sweethearts on their tenth wedding anniversary. Hoseok has never loved anything more.
Hyunwoo’s fingers splay over his cheek, Hyunwoo’s other hand travelling along his back in slow strokes, and Hoseok then notices how tense his shoulders have been, how hard he’s been clenching his jaw, how scared he’s getting, to love someone this much, to feel something this fierce, encapsulating his weak heart in shackles of deep contentment and delightful laughter, and he's genuinely scared of ever letting go.
The waves beat stronger in his ears. Hoseok sees clamps and shellfish worming up from the sand, glimpses the first winks of the sun and the shorebirds hovering over the surface. Sea oats wave with the breeze, and right in the core of it is Hyunwoo, who breaks the kiss first and steadies him against his chest.
Hoseok lets out something between a laugh and a hiccup. “I hope this is not a fever dream.”
Hyunwoo takes him in an embrace, puts his mouth to the top of Hoseok’s head, and whispers, “you still owe me a night.”
Hoseok cackles louder. “I already spooned you for a whole week, it’s my turn now.”
“I’m pretty sure you bailed on me Saturday night for a sleepover in Heeyeon’s place, you need to make up for it.”
“Your memory is glitching, it was a Sunday.”
They end up facing each other on Hyunwoo’s bed, Hoseok’s arm secured tight around Hyunwoo’s waist, his lips gently nipping on Hyunwoo’s collarbones, Hyunwoo’s legs tangled with his, the dragon plushie watching on with glee.
When summer rolls in, Hoseok keeps his promise and takes Hyunwoo to the beach (‘so, a date?’ Hyunwoo says; ‘yes, a date’ Hoseok confirms and they giggle like kids).
They mingle first with the general crowd, with families of two and four and eight, the waves crushing on the shore and jostling his feet. Hoseok had been high-fiving and complimenting a child for building an impressive sand castle when Hyunwoo trudges to his side, sun kissed and shimmering like christmas lights. Hoseok sighs dreamily. “I told you not to wear those shorts, we’re in public,” he says and slaps Hyunwoo’s thigh.
Hyunwoo gasps. “Ow, I’m not naked, am I?”
“Sure, you’re not naked, but this is definitely worse, there’s literally a shark on your crotch.”
The shark’s jaw is opened wide, sneering with evil painted eyebrows. Hoseok shakes his head.
“It’s cute though, don’t you think?” Hyunwoo asks, smile bright.
Hoseok thinks about other things, but uh, alas, public. He buys the child a popsicle and waves her goodbye before she runs to her parents.
“Do you like kids?” Hyunwoo asks as he takes his arm and pulls him along.
Hoseok ducks when a volley ball almost smacks him in the face. The teenagers bow in apology. “Yes, and I hope you do too because we’ll be fostering a lot of them in our future home,” he says, the words taking shape before he could rein them in. He swallows the sun down his dry throat and chances a look at Hyunwoo.
Hyunwoo is grinning, and his hand slides down Hoseok’s arm to tangle their fingers together. “Glad we already agree on that. Just as a heads up, I’ll be the fun silly parent who goes trick or treating with their kids, you can be the strict one.”
Hoseok starts tearing up. He doesn’t answer and Hyunwoo holds his hand tighter.
He collapses on his beach towel stomach down, his head shielded by the parasol and the sun beating down on his flushed back. He dozes off beneath Hyunwoo’s skillful hands, slicking his body with sunscreen.
Hoseok wakes up some time later to light pressure around his neck and up his scalp. He looks up and Hyunwoo gestures with his chin to follow him. It’s a ten minutes walk over grilled sand, and the farther they go, the less crowded it gets.
They come upon a cliff shrouded by trees and clouds, barely anyone around. Hyunwoo jumps the small distance and gets greeted by gentle waves. He remains underwater for a few minutes then breaks through the surface, his shorts bunched up in his hands, the blue tail flapping in the water.
Hoseok laughs. “Just let it go, it’s ugly anyway.”
“Hell no,” Hyunwoo says, offended. “This is a treasure, I’m guarding it with my life.” He knots the swimwear around his neck and holds his arm open. “Jump, I’ll catch you.”
Even this far away, Hoseok can see clearly the way his golden eyes throb with each beat, visible shimmering scales covering his bronzed skin. Hoseok wishes he had a camera on him.
“I’m scared of height,” Hoseok says with a smile.
Hyunwoo’s eyes soften. “Close your eyes, it’ll end sooner than you think.”
“I might also drown, I can’t swim well.”
“I won’t let it happen.”
“I thought you wanted to do the opposite.”
“I changed my mind, I can’t possibly drown my star-wielder.”
Hoseok laughs again. “Your what?”
Hyunwoo doesn’t answer, only opens his arms wider.
Hoseok takes some seconds to steady his heart, inhales deep and jumps before his mind could catch up with his limbs. The drop is immediate and sudden, and Hyunwoo wraps scaly arms around his waist and swims to the surface.
The stubborn shorts are still clinging to Hyunwoo’s neck. Hyunwoo kisses his pouty lips. “See, told you it’d be fine.”
They sway with the waves, the rays momentarily blinding him. Hyunwoo is so breathtaking, otherworldly, made of dreams, and Hoseok knows what his next tableau will be. “Something about star-wielder?”
Hyunwoo blushes, gorgeous and bashful. “We usually refer to souls as stars. My star-wielder, my soul-mate.”
“Oh, my God, that’s so cheesy, I love it.” Hoseok grins.
“Boyfriend works too, if you will.”
Hoseok doesn’t understand what’s consuming him, what’s overwhelming him to the point of an achy heart soaring through his chest. His breath catches in his throat, and he’s so thankful in that moment for the arms still keeping him afloat. “This is insane Hyunwoo, I love you so much I’m kind of scared. I’m really, really scared.”
“Don’t be,” Hyunwoo says in a soothing voice. “I can’t glamour you, I promise.”
“How can I be sure?”
“I mean, you’ve met my sister before, right?”
“Oh yeah, that actually makes sense.”
They laugh, high and loud, and the seagulls laugh along. Hyunwoo’s eyes light up, and before Hoseok could make sense of them, he gets pulled underwater, Hyunwoo swimming down instead of up towards the sun. Hoseok holds his breath, hears the familiar gurgled water sound in his ears, his eyes closed. He feels hands sneaking up his neck, locking on his jaw, and then something soft pressing to his mouth, familiar like the inside of his wrist. He realizes that Hyunwoo is kissing him in the heart of the cold ocean, kissing him slowly, fully, and it’s so extra, so him Hoseok feels himself falling deeper in love.
When they surge up again, Hoseok whines and frets about his life. “What about a warning next time, monkfish?”
Hyunwoo grins. “I wanted to include an element of surprise, how was it?”
“That was the most romantic thing someone has ever done for me,” Hoseok says seriously.
“I love you Hoseokkie,” Hyunwoo then says, honest and sincere, Hoseok almost starts sobbing.
He holds his chest. “Please, a warning, my heart dearest, it’s weak.”
Hyunwoo smiles, kisses the top of his head, pulls him back to the shore, and Hoseok vows to never let go.
hoseok >>>> minhyuk, hyungwon (8:19 pm)
guess i have a boyfriend now
¯\_(ツ)_/¯
hyungwon (8:25 pm)
congrats!!!
that makes us two now
not bad ;)
minhyuk (8:27 pm)
i see you calling on the bees
careful, they might sting you in the ass
hyungwon (8:27 pm)
i’d like to see them try
minhyuk (8:28 pm)
hoseokkie babe i’m happy for you
hoseok (8:28 pm)
thank you ╥﹏╥
minhyuk (8:29 pm)
wonnie babe youre about to choke on your words get yourself a cup of piss
hyungwon (8:30 pm)
ew nasty
i’m intrigued though
minhyuk (8:32 pm)
so this happened
he was like ‘you suck lee minhyuk’
and i was like ‘you suck yoo kihyun, but can you suck better than me’
and now I’ll spare you the details
hyungwon (8:33 pm)
oh my fuckinnngizlqefhehfqeyegf
hoseok (8:33 pm)
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
this is literally that enemies to lovers trope
hyungwon (8:33 pm)
HOLYYYHIHFUUU fuck
minhyuk (8:34 pm)
we’re not lovers yet
but this is definitely going places
he’s taking me out for dinner tomorrow
and who am i to deny a gentleman on his offer
hoseok (8:34 pm)
i'm so happy for you minhyukkie ;-;
i'll bake you some brownies to commemorate this moment in history
minhyuk (8:34 pm)
yes please
you make the best brownies in the world
don't tell mom
hyungwon (8:35 pm)
you guys are cute sure
but can you beat this
in my humble opinion, i think the fuck not
minhyuk (8:35 pm)
❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
i gotta give it to the dimple and the kittens
hoseok (8:36 pm)
honey is so cute, so pure :((
i want to share something too
minhyuk (8:36 pm)
that's hot
hoseok (8:37 pm)
shut up we were cuddling
minhyuk (8:37 pm)
'cuddling' 👀
hyungwon (8:37 pm)
( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)
hoseok (8:38 pm)
HJGJZ:JGGFHIZUESJK;
(hoseok is typing...)