Chapter Text
Mark laid on his bed looking at his phone as he scrolled through Twitter. He had just gotten back from dance practice and decided to lounge around while he waited for the others to complete their schedules.
As he scrolled through the pits of Twitter he began getting bored as he only saw the same old things. Fans practically melting over Taeyong or someone else of his group or someone posting about how soft they were for a specific member.
He turned off the phone then rolled around for a few minutes. He turned to his pile of stuffed animals then grabbed one and rubbed it's head. "It's so boring being here alone, right teddy?" He obviously got no response making him pout. "If only you could talk to me."
He heaved a heavy sigh as he sat up making the bed creak below him. He looked around his room then jumped out of bed. He opened his door then walked to the fridge. As he opened it he nearly cried at how empty it was.
He hugged his cheeks out and went back to his room, shutting and locking the door just in case. As he tried looking for some decent clothes to go out in.
"We're back!" A loud shout echoed through the door as the others began filing in the room.
Taeyong looked around and noticed Mark wasn't where they had last saw him. He wasn't on the couch and as the others began to sit down and get comfy Taeyong couldn't help but worry. "Mark?" He called out gently not wanting to scare the other if he was here.
Much to his surprise, Mark lee came waltzing out of his bedroom fit dressed with a mask and hat on. He was halted by their worried leader who only gulped once he took in his full appearance. Mark has velvet pants and a dark blue shirt tucked into them as a belt hugged his waist. He also had a jacket that looked way to big to be his own mainly because of the way it slowly slid down his shoulders. "Hyung? When did you guys get back?" Taeyong slowly snapped out of his daydream like state as he blinked at the others behind the younger who were a bit too distracted with the TV to care.
Taeyong let out a quiet cough then stared at him blankly. "W-We just got back right now. Where are you going?" Mark smiled at the elder making Taeyong slightly blush. "The store. We're almost out of food so I thought I'd go and get some more." Taeyong looked him up and down again and stared. "L-Like that?"
"Yeah why is something wrong hyung?" Taeyong gulped at the way the word "hyung" slid off his tongue. Almost laced with a special venom just to poison Taeyong as Mark watched him suffer. "Your clothes.. aren't they a bit much for the store?"
"Hm you think so? I thought it was pretty casual." Taeyong knew this outfit was indeed not casual. It bothered him for some reason that Mark was going out into the public dressed like that.
As he was in his heavily dazed state, Taeyong could see Mark pull out his phone. The younger screeches as he mumbled something about being late for a sale.
Taeyong watched as he put on his boots and silently took in a deep breath as Mark bent over to tie the laces.
Taeyong quickly shook his head and decided to distract himself by going to the kitchen. Since cooking would be better to think about. At least better than thinking about how good Mark looked in those awfully tight jeans.
While Mark was out he decided he should get somethings for the dream dorm as well. Last time he had been there had been well over a month ago to catch up with donghyuck and their fridge was nearly empty as well.
Even if he was only older than them by a year he was still worried about their health. Especially since he couldn't pay attention to them directly now that he had graduated from Dream.
He hummed as he looked down the aisles of the store then saw the frozen treat section. He decided to get them something to say he was proud of them. As he walked through the aisles he bumped into someone's tall stature nearly knocking his hat off of his head.
"Ah I'm so sorry!" He muttered apologetically to not get into any arguments with the stranger. He felt quite embarrassed the way his eyes linger on him for a while but he figured it was because he just bumped into someone who practically drawfed Johnny and Johnny was pretty tall on his own.
As he continued walking he saw a small bakery near the bread section and decided to head over there. He ended up getting two cakes. One vanilla and the other chocolate. He ended up also getting tons of ice cream much to his own dismay.
He paid for everything then exited the store as he decided to head to the dream dorm before he got back to the 127 dorm. He was only going to give them their food and of course to check on them because even if he wasn't that much older, Mark worried just as much as Taeyong did. So he hummed a quiet tune as the wind followed him while he let his feet carry him to the place he knows very well.
His walk was peaceful, except for the various things he heard around him. He could hear faint screaming from people behind him. It wasn't like fan chant screaming but it was more or less like arguing so he decided to ignore it.
He could feel some people staring at him as he walked by but didn't know why. Did he look out of place maybe? Or maybe his clothes really weren't as casual as he once thought and maybe Taeyong was right to question his appearance. Soon enough he could see the dream dorms coming into view. Once the negative thoughts were pushed out of his head he saw some girl walk up to him. "Excuse me sir?"
"Um yes?" He asked with a bit of confusion as her eyes shined bright as she looked at him. "I just wanted to say you look really nice today. Have a good day." Mark blushed at the sudden compliment as his heart swelled with pride. "Y-You too." Before he could even thank her, she was already gone. Mark's heart swelled into pride as he walked closer to the dorms. He figured maybe those people all thought he looked nice to but hadn't had the courage to say anything like that nice lady had.
The thought that people were staring at him because they enjoyed looking at him made him happy. The fact that people had their eyes lingering on him not because of hate or disgust but because of pride and admiration gave the younger an ego boost as he made his way to the dream dorm. He looked through his pocket then smiled. He still had the key mainly because he wanted to be able to get to them if they were ever in danger.
He unlocked the door then opened it as he brought the bags in. As he walked in he could see Jaemin and Renjun wrestling and Jisung sitting on his phone before he looked up at him. "Mark hyung?" This caused both of them to stop as they looked at the older male with shock in their eyes. "What are you doing here hyung?" Renjun asked confusingly and before Mark could reply he heard rapid footsteps.
"Mark hyung!" Jeno had tackled the older in a hug causing him to fall to the ground in a loud thud. "Ah I missed you hyung you should've come by sooner. It's so boring without you here." Jeno muttered into his shoulder as Mark only blushed at the way his breath hit his neck. "I'm sorry Jeno. But I bought you guys some food." Donghyuck and Chenle soon came around the corner and indeed saw Mark holding bags in his hands. Donghyuck saw Jeno clinging to Mark then pulled the him off of the older just so he could show them what he bought. "What kind of food?" Jaemin questioned.
"Mainly things to make meals and treats." Chenle brightened at the treats part and everyone saw him put three bags down. "These ones are for the 127 dorm but these are for you." As Mark moved aside from the bags they could see what he was wearing and how his jacket was barely on by his arms. His mask only being held by one ear so he could speak easier and his hair in a much more messy form. They saw him taking things out and Donghyuck paid attention to the way his hands glided along the thin plastic bag.
"I don't really remember the flavors you each like so I got them all." Chenle saw the ice cream and made a happy sound when the latter took out multiple flavors. "I also got you guys some cake to show how proud I am." He smiled and Jaemin scoffed. "So cheesy hyung."
"Thank you Jaeminnie that's what I was going for." His smile made Jaemin's heart skip a beat but he ignored it. While Mark unloaded the things and began putting them in the fridge they kind of just stared at him. Except for Jeno as he was being restricted from even looking at him by Renjun since he latched unto him like a koala. "I have to leave soon so I just wanted to make sure you had enough food to last you a while." A high pitched whine came from Jeno who was still being pinned down by Renjun. "Hyung do you have to go? We barely get to see you."
"Yeah. It's so quiet and i'm not used to your room being so empty." Jisung was the one who replied and Mark only blinked at them. "I have to get back though, the sky is starting to get dark and soon you'll have to sleep."
"Can't you stay a little while longer? The hyungs get to see you every day while we get to see you every few months." Jaemin had now replied joining the conversation with a pout on his face. Mark sat there and thought about it for a bit. He could easily just stay with them but what if his hyungs worried about him being out too late? The last thing he wanted to do was worry them for something so small. But then he also wouldn't be able to forgive himself if he hurt the dreamies as they were practically still children in his eyes. Finally he decided wit a heavy. "Fine i'll stay for a while. I'll just put the hyung's groceries up so they don't go bad."
His response made them all happy.