Work Text:
Daehyun's fingers still on the keys as he stares at the screen, his cursor blinking over the document and the clock shining wearily at him.
2:39am.
He adjusts his headphones, eyes fluttering shut as the song winds down. It's a soft piece - something smooth and calming for the wee hours of the morning - and not for the first time, he wants to meet the person behind the show.
"That was Tokyo, lo-fi mix," D.Min murmurs, voice low and soothing, "and next up, we have The Truth Untold. For all of you studying and working hard out there, I know you can do it."
Daehyun laughs, a little sad, a little wet, and stares at his screen, unsure of what to type or what to say or even how to feel.
He feels like a rag that's been wrung dry - one that's held together with only the barest of threads and seems on the verge of falling apart.
The opening beats ring through his ears, and his eyes flutter shut, chin coming to rest on his hand.
He may not know who D.Min is, may not even remember how he found "bubble tea radio", as D.Min once called it, but he knows it's gotten him through some of the worst times.
Music is funny like that.
He hovers between lucidity and sleep, fingers trudging their slow paths across the keyboard, and D.Min announces a few more songs, the clock slipping from 2:39 to 3:00 to 3:30.
"To all of you still awake out there," the man finally murmurs, and Daehyun blinks, staring at his half-full screen, "get some rest. And just remember - there is always someone out there who cares about you. Now, for our last song of the night, I'm bringing you Butterfly. Take care of yourselves out there."
Daehyun stares at his screen as the soft beat of the song filters in, and his head falls into his hands, tears slipping down his cheeks as his shoulders shake with ill-contained sobs.
He doesn't know if it's from exhaustion, from relief, or from despair, but he knows-
he knows D.Min cares.
It might not mean anything, but somehow, some way, he knows D.Min cares.
And that-
he needed that.
"Good night, D.Min-hyung," he whispers, shutting his laptop and turning off his phone. "You take care of yourself, too."
(halfway across the city, a dark-haired man stares out his window and smiles, placing his headphones on the desk and turning off his microphone.
"sleep well, everyone.")