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Seokmin’s feet dragged along the sidewalk. It was dark and quiet on this street; the only sounds were his shuffling footsteps and the buzz of the streetlamp. As he passed beneath it, he watched his shadow dance around him. He straightened up, hiking his bag further up on his shoulder. Practice tonight had been intense, but he felt good. Everything was going well for the production, and he was excited for his bandmates to see him onstage in Xcalibur. He grinned to himself. He was going to make them so proud.
His smile faded as his feet throbbed, each step making him feel like he could collapse right there. He saw the dorm just a block away, but it might as well have been a mile. Seokmin checked his watch. “Gah, 2am already.” He noticed all the lights in their home seemed to be off except for one room, glowing orange with lamplight. They’d also left the light over the door on for him. His heart felt warm. As busy as they all were, someone still thought of him.
He’d finally reached the door, dragging himself up the last two steps to their dorm’s landing. He leaned heavily against the cool metal, absently patting his pockets for his keys. He fished them out of his pocket, only to feel them slip from his grasp and clatter to the ground. Forehead pressed to the door, he let out a deep sigh, feeling as though he could deflate himself completely and collapse right there. He peeled himself away, leaning down to retrieve the keys. His fingers swept over them uselessly twice before he finally groaned at himself, clutching them firmly in his hand. He jammed the key into the locks and typed in the code on the pinpad, finally hearing the welcoming beep as the door unlocked. He swung it open and stepped into the cool, blessed darkness of the hallway, shutting and locking the door behind him.
He toed his shoes off quietly, wincing a bit as his sore feet hit the flat ground. His slippers were a familiar comfort as he trudged down the hallway, aiming to check the living room before he made his way up the stairs to his bedroom. He saw someone sleeping on the couch by the window, soft snores coming from a bundle of blankets.
Seokmin grinned, padding over to his sleeping friend. Jihoon had fallen asleep writing, a pen still in his hand. One of his blankets had slipped off the couch a little, uncovering his feet. Seokmin carefully picked the blanket up off the floor, tucking it softly around Jihoon’s feet so it wouldn’t fall again. He crept around, gently unwrapping the sleeping boy’s fingers so that he could take the pen from him, setting it on the coffee table. He bent down, pressing a soft kiss to Jihoon’s forehead before tiptoeing his way up the stairs.
Much like the street outside, the upstairs hallway was dark and quiet. Seokmin suddenly felt a pang of loneliness, despite being surrounded by his sleeping friends, tucked away behind their bedroom doors. Late-night hours were always lonely for Seokmin, especially during the periods of time when he had trouble sleeping. Earlier in their career, there were nights when he would lie awake no matter what, no matter how hard he’d practiced or how badly he wanted to sleep. At first, he would wander the halls, pacing to try to tire himself out. He eventually started holing up in the living room, quietly practicing his parts or catching up on anime.
It was then that he realized there was one other member who struggled with insomnia. One night, he heard someone else shuffling down the hallway, stopping in surprise upon seeing Sekomin. They sat for a while and talked, commiserating over their shared inability to sleep. Seokmin clicked over to a new episode and they cuddled together, prepared for another long and sleepless night. Much to Seokmin’s surprise, the next thing he knew it was morning. Light streamed in through the windows and the television was asking if he was still watching his show. He looked over, hearing snores coming from beside him.
Ever since, they’d been each other’s good luck charm. Seokmin’s insomnia got better. He’d gotten older, and long, sleepless nights were few and far between. Lately though, he’d been so busy with the play. There were nights he didn’t make it to his room at all, sleeping on a cot in the theater or crashing on the couch in the living room. He felt guilty, even a little fearful. He didn’t want to lose his good luck charm.
As he came around the corner, he noticed light coming from beneath his bedroom door. That must have been the glowing window he noticed before. He smiled to himself, feeling relieved. He carefully turned the doorknob, slipping inside as quietly as he could. Sitting propped up against the headboard of Seokmin’s bed, Jeonghan was deeply asleep. Seokmin noticed a book in his lap, his large round glasses slipped down low on his nose. His head hung down a little, silver hair tousled over his eyes. Seokmin padded over, sitting down carefully on the bed. He reached up, removing Jeonghan’s glasses and setting them on the bedside table. He tucked a bookmark between the pages to mark where he’d stopped reading, before closing the book and placing it beside his glasses. He turned around, noticing a k-drama playing on the TV behind him. Jeonghan must have been trying to wait up for him to get home.
Seokmin smiled, his feeling of loneliness gone. They’d been through a lot together. It had been years since that first night they realized they both couldn’t sleep, and they’d spent nearly every night together since. Sometimes, Seokmin forgot how much time had passed. He traced his eyes over the lines of Jeonghan’s face, noticing how much had changed. He’d slimmed down, cut his hair, worried a lot. Jeonghan was good at jokingly reminding them that he was an old man at the ripe age of 25, but right now, he looked every bit of it. The lamp cast a shadow over his face and his lips were downturned; he looked somber and tired.
He reached forward, cupping Jeonghan’s cheek. The boy stirred, blinking a few times before his eyes focused. Seokmin wished he could photograph the brilliant smile that followed, Jeonghan’s eyes slipping closed as he leaned into Seokmin’s touch. “Hey, you’re home.”
Seokmin smiled in return, leaning forward to kiss him on the cheek. His skin was warm with sleep and he smelled like cinnamon, like always. “Yeah, finally. I thought tonight would never end.”
Jeonghan grinned, winding his fingers through Seokmin’s hair. “Did practice go well?”
Seokmin nodded emphatically, leaning down to lay on Jeonghan’s chest. “Yeah, it’s going so well! I can’t wait for you to see it. I hope I’ll make you proud, Jeonghannie.”
Jeonghan hugged him tight. “I’ll be there the very first night, Seokmin. I wouldn’t miss it for the world.”
Seokmin felt all his exhaustion, his anxiety, his loneliness just melt away, replaced by a warm, full feeling. He shifted, wrapping his arms around Jeonghan’s back. He buried his face into his chest. “Really? You’ll do that for me?”
Jeonghan smoothed a hand down his back. “Of course I will.” He leaned his head back, his eyes sliding closed. “I’d do anything for you.” He ran his fingers over the nape of Seokmin’s neck, tugging his hair lightly at the spot he knew he liked. “Why don’t you put on your pajamas? We should get some sleep.”
Seokmin grumbled, dragging himself upright. Jeonghan grinned, nudging him with his knee. Seokmin rolled off the bed, wincing as he tugged his shirt over his head. He unbuttoned his pants and wiggled his hips from side to side until they fell to the floor. He heard Jeonghan giggle behind him. He slipped on a soft t-shirt, letting out an exaggerated groan as he bent down to slide his legs into some gym shorts. He dragged a hand through his hair, turning to wander back to his bed.
Jeonghan clicked his tongue. “Hey now, that’s my shirt.”
Seokmin smiled brightly. “Mine now.”
Jeonghan rolled his eyes, sliding over so Seokmin could fall into bed. He settled into the warm spot that Jeonghan left behind, pulling the covers up over his tired legs. Jeonghan leaned across Seokmin to click the lamp off, and Seokmin took the opportunity to tug him down to his chest. Jeonghan giggled again, looking down at Seokmin’s face in the dim light of the television.
Seokmin looked up at him seriously for a moment. “Thank you for waiting up for me.”
Jeonghan tilted his head. “But I fell asleep anyway.”
Seokmin smiled. “I know, but you tried. And that means a lot.”
Jeonghan grinned, leaning down to press their lips together. Seokmin brought his hands up to thread through Jeonghan’s hair, feeling like his heart could burst. He was so tired, and so, so happy. He pulled back just a little.
“I love you.”
Jeonghan smiled, pressing a warm, long kiss to Seokmin’s cheek. “I love you too, my darling.”
Seokmin blushed. No matter how long they were together, he’d never get tired of hearing it. Every time, he silently thanked his lucky stars that he’d been cursed with the inability to sleep.
Jeonghan slid back over to his spot, tugging Seokmin to his chest. Seokmin burrowed into Jeonghan’s shoulder, basking in this feeling that he hoped they’d carry forever.
Jeonghan pressed a kiss into Seokmin’s hair. “You’ve worked hard today. Let’s sleep.”
“I’ll always work hard if it means I get to come home to you.”