Work Text:
Jaebeom has resorted to learning how to play Minecraft with Youngjae as a means of spending more time with him over the holidays. And he sucks at it. Badly. As of now, the only thing he’s great at is collecting wood... and dirt. Youngjae is busy rounding up some chickens.
<prdsdef> hello can i come in
<333cyj333> close the gate or they will run
So he does, and horror unfolds as the sun begins to set.
Jaebeom has trouble telling the gate apart from the rest of the fence but he opens it eventually. Unfortunately, he makes the mistake of doing so while the chickens were nearby. It’s hard enough playing without a mouse, but Jaebeom’s computer can’t handle running the server and the game simultaneously. He has to make do with just his laptop. And well… he wasn’t able to close the gate in time. Not even to salvage one, single bird.
<333cyj333> DUDE
<prdsdef> I’M SORRY
prdsdef was slain by Zombie
<prdsdef> HNSBJSK
<prdsdef> I NEED A MOUSE
333cyj333 was shot by Skeleton
333cyj333 left the game
“Oh my god,” Jaebeom whispers to himself. Knowing better than to message Youngjae immediately while he’s still mad at him, he sits back to think. It’s only 11PM, but the pair are going to see a movie they’ve booked tickets for noon the next day.
He has an idea, and plenty of time before he actually needs to head to bed.
+++++++++++++++
“Oh shit.”
Jaebeom wakes up to 4 missed calls and 10 messages from Youngjae. He’s even got 4 messages from Mark… he’s fucked.
It’s 12:44PM.
Cursing as he fumbles around, he finally sits up and lets the situation fully sink in. He musters the courage to open up his messages and leaves Youngjae a string of missed calls, followed by a landslide of apology texts.
And Youngjae reads every single one, in real time.
Jaebeom tries again, ten hours later. He simply texts Youngjae his new IP address, which had changed since the last time they played. Youngjae sees the message and decides to log into the server. Realising he’s back at their respawn point, he heaves a sigh. He forgot to note down the coordinates of their home base. So he sets off to explore once again, no longer having any tools at his disposal. It’s been a while since he’s started from scratch, but it gives him something to take his mind off Jaebeom before he eventually joins the game.
Youngjae starts to find his way around after stumbling across the first village they encountered. He knows he’s left a whole bunch of shit in some chests in the little oak house Jaebeom made for the two to ‘live’ in. It’s ugly and cramped, but Jaebeom was extremely proud of it and it made Youngjae smile. It was their home. Even if there was no space for them to jump or move around. “It’s so we can stay close and keep warm,” Jaebeom insisted, the one time they decided to voice chat in-game. Youngjae almost busted Jaebeom’s eardrums from laughing so hard.
That’s when he eventually comes across a farm. A whole ass farm. Hell, even the sheep were colour-coded.
Youngjae could only imagine how long it would’ve taken for Jaebeom to round up each animal and lure them into their respective fences. Their base was so isolated and nowhere near any herds. He also would’ve had to search up how to lure each animal online. This time, he’s made the gates with a different type of wood from the rest of the fences. They’re all wonky and asymmetrical. Youngjae wonders how Jaebeom could have possibly managed to do all of this with a tiny trackpad.
There’s also a wooden sign in front of the chicken fence with a very sincere, “i ‘m sorry yougnjae”. It’s surrounded by yellow tulips too. Only then does he realise that he’d been alone the entire time since he logged in. He finally calls Jaebeom back, and after five rings he picks up.
“Youngjae,” he croaks.
“How long did all of that take you?” he asks gently. Youngjae has to pull his phone away from his ear to avoid the crackling static as Jaebeom shuffles around in bed. But he leaves his question unanswered.
“I lost track of time and got carried away, I didn’t mean to sleep in,” Jaebeom says in a tiny voice, and it sinks Youngjae’s heart. “I know. I’m really sorry for getting mad at you, like… twice in a row. And for ignoring you. I know how much you hate that.”
“S’okay... I’m sorry you had to watch the movie alone.”
“I didn’t watch it. I went home,” Youngjae admits.
“Oh my god, Youngjae. The tickets.”
“Shut up,” he sighs. “They were non-refundable, I know. Do you want to go back to sleep?”
“I couldn’t find any.”
“Find any what?”
“Black sheep. Only had white ones… and grey. And brown? I think.”
“No, I said-” Youngjae takes a deep breath in, laughing as he breathes out “...nevermind. Go back to bed.”
“Wait, don’t go,” he begs.
“You’re sleep deprived and it’s all my fault. I’ll come over to your place tomorrow, okay? I’ll bring my laptop too.”
There’s no reply for a while, just some more shuffling.
“Come now,” Jaebeom says sulkily.
“It’s late. And I don’t have a car.”
“Don’t care. Use a horse.”
“I don’t have one of those either,” Youngjae teases.
“Teleport to me.”
“I don’t have the technology to do that.”
“The real world sucks.”
“It sure does.”
+++++++++++++++++++++++
<prdsdef> can u marry in minecraft?
<333cyj333> i mean
To be honest, Youngjae wasn’t really bothered explaining the concept of mods to Jaebeom. It’s night time in the game, again. They’re both stranded in the air on their own individual, makeshift dirt towers they’ve built to stay safe for the time being. Jaebeom’s tower is excessively high, he’s so far up Youngjae can’t see him on his own screen anymore. They’ve got zombie noises. There’s calm, serene music disrupted by the occasional sheep. This is one of the strangest situations Youngjae has ever found himself in. He takes a screenshot of his view and sends it to Mark to laugh at.
<333cyj333> kind of? but also not really
<prdsdef> well that sucks
<333cyj333> why
<333cyj333> who are u gonna marry anyway
prdsdef fell from a high place
<prdsdef> fuck