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"No, no, dammit- go left! Left! Goddammit-"
Minsoo slams his fists into the desk, fury blazing in his eyes. "You had one job!"
"...hyung?"
Minsoo turns, ready to throw his coffee cup at whichever brave (and foolish) soul dares disturb his match, only for his gaze to meet Jaewon's, deep bags underscoring the younger man's eyes and crimson hair messy.
"Is everything okay?" Jaewon presses, and Minsoo glares at his computer screen for a moment before pushing half of his headphones off, gaze flitting back to the screen.
"What's wrong?" he asks, watching as the clock ticks down until the next round.
"I..."
Jaewon worries his lower lip between his teeth, looking embarrassed at even being in Minsoo and Dongho's room. "...I couldn't sleep, so I was going to the kitchen to get a snack."
Minsoo clicks out of his game (inwardly promising to come back to it later - but his teammates are shit, so they don't deserve his time) and pulls off his headphones, placing them on his desk. "Time is it?"
"Two am," Jaewon mumbles, and Minsoo forces himself to stand, stretching out his legs before crossing the room. "Hyung?"
Minsoo snags his laptop from the side table and tugs Jaewon into the living room, all but depositing him on the couch before grabbing some blankets and dumping them unceremoniously on his dongsaeng's lap. Jaewon blinks at him, evidently stunned, and Minsoo unfolds them, wrapping one around Jaewon's back before stealing two for himself.
"You like games?" he asks, and Jaewon blinks at him again, clearly exhausted.
And, well-
he may be the leader, but he's also a hyung to Jaewon, even if he doesn't act like it.
"We're playing a game," he states, booting up an old game from who knows how long ago. "You take the arrow keys, I'll take WASD."
Jaewon stares at him, and as Minsoo watches, he taps out a familiar code on the arrow keys.
Up-up-down-down-left-right-left-right-
"There's no cheat code to my friendship," Minsoo teases, and Jaewon goes rigid, eyes widening.
"I-"
Minsoo nudges his arm, a grin playing on his lips. "I'm joking," he grins, and Jaewon only relaxes slightly at that. "Hey, Jaewon-ah-"
"How do you play?"
Minsoo's eyes light up at the distraction, and he turns back to the screen, a grin playing on his lips. "So! You're Fireboy, and I'm Watergirl!"
"What?"
It's awesome, Minsoo thinks, watching Jaewon unwind as they treck through a forest temple. Even if he rages a few times (and almost throws the computer across the room because his character can't make a jump to save her life) Jaewon seems to be having fun, and that's the point of games, right?
Having fun?
And besides, it's great seeing Jaewon slowly come out of his shell, finally making a few joking comments about how horrible the jumps are (to which Minsoo entirely agrees) and it's perfect. At least, as perfect as impromptu gaming sessions at four in the morning can be.
(So pretty perfect, at least in Minsoo's opinion.)
Eventually, they clear the last level, and Minsoo starts babbling about something or another, only for his gaze to meet Jaewon's, and oh, the walls are back up.
"Jaewon-ah?" he tries, and Jaewon's gaze snaps to his, disbelief evident. "Is everything okay?"
His dongsaeng fiddles with the hem of his tee, opting not to reply.
"Jaewon-ah-"
"Are we friends?"
Minsoo's eyes widen at that, and Jaewon's head falls forwards, crimson hair eclipsing his eyes. "I-I mean, I know you probably don't like me that much, 'cause of my reputation and all the stuff I do, but-"
"Hey, hey, Jaewon-ah..."
Minsoo bends down in front of him, leaning in to catch Jaewon's gaze. "We're friends," he confirms, and Jaewon's eyes go shiny with some undecipherable emotion. "Why would we not be?"
Jaewon's hands spasm wildly for a moment before going still, and his next words are so quiet Minsoo has to strain to hear them.
"But you guys... you seem like you don't want me around?"
"No, no, Jaewon-"
The enormity of this misunderstanding is crashing down around them, and it feels like all Minsoo can do is watch.
"No, no, that was never it!" he exclaims - perhaps a bit too energetically, given the way Jaewon flinches. "We- well, I, at least - always thought you didn't like us!"
Jaewon blinks owlishly at him, and Minsoo tries for a grin. "I mean, I only play Fireboy and Watergirl with people I really like!"
A tear arcs down his dongsaeng's cheek, and Minsoo realizes that Jaewon's crying. "I-I just-"
He rubs at his cheeks, successfully swiping away the tears, only for more to take their place. "You guys... you want me around?"
Minsoo sits down on the couch next to him, rubbing soft circles into his dongsaeng's back. "Yeah," he simply states, and that seems to be enough, somehow.
He stays there for what must be hours, and he must fall asleep at some point, since the next thing he knows, Daehyun's waking him up with a soft shake. And oh-
Jaewon's hair is still messy, head nestled into Minsoo's shoulder and a bit of drool rolling down his cheek. He still looks tired, panda eyes evident, and Minsoo presses a finger to his lips and opts to wake Jaewon himself.
"Hey. Hey, Jaewon-ah."
Jaewon lets out a small sigh, curling back into Minsoo's shoulder, and oh, his heart.
He's been attacked. Wounded. Jaewon's too cute this early in the morning.
(He never thought cute was a word he'd use to describe Ahn Jaewon, and yet that's undeniably what this is. Cute.)
"Jaewon-ah," he continues, nudging Jaewon a little harder, "you gotta get up."
He can see the exact moment Jaewon comes back to himself - he flinches, head flying off Minsoo's shoulder at Mach 20. "O-Oh my god, hyung-"
"I'm tired," Minsoo declares, draping himself over Jaewon's back. "I'm tired, and you're going to be my cuddle buddy in the van today."
Jaewon's eyes widen, but he doesn't comment, the only thing giving him away the slight twist to the edge of his mouth.
He's happy.
(Maybe there is a cheat code to Jaewon's happiness, after all.)