Chapter Text
Chanhee and Changmin made quite the duo, their unpredictability only contributing to their charms. Although they were different, they complemented each other perfectly, Chanhee’s softness ebbing away the sharpness of Changmin’s boundless energy, as he in turn spoke up during Chanhee’s moments of silence.
In an interesting way, they worked, as best friends… and eventually boyfriends.
Or something.
No one could be quite sure, as neither boy had come forward to admit or announce anything. It just… happened?
It began with holding hands constantly, to Chanhee plopping himself on Changmin’s lap during meal times or movie nights - even though there was more than enough room for everyone.
Then the whole group witnessed Changmin plant a chaste kiss on Chanhee’s lips after a gruelling dance practice session and leave the room, followed closely by a whining Chanhee whose problem was the fact that they were sweaty.
Simultaneously, everyone turned to the leader who merely grabbed his bag up off the floor and shot them a look of pure refusal.
“Not today boys. The van leaves in ten minutes. Move it.”
If Sangyeon thought it was fine not to address it, then the rest of them were cool with it and at the time, it seemed like a good idea.
The sentiment remained for about two months, then confusion settled in. Specifically, on one of the maknaes, with Sunwoo being the unlucky victim.
The redhead had always had something of a fun, comfortable relationship with all his hyungs and maybe if he was asked with a token of bribery, he would confess that Chanhee hyung was one of his favorites.
There was nothing specific that bound them together. Chanhee was like all the other hyungs who adored the younger boys, but he took special care of them in a way that was familial. He cooked for them, checked up on them regularly, smiled through all the teasing that some would consider rude.
Sunwoo appreciated him with his entire being and somewhere in his heart, he hoped to never lose what they had, and thankfully, he didn’t. It just … changed.
The first clue was a sunny Friday afternoon, on a week off. The group was thankful for the rest they were getting, but couldn't help but wish the circumstances were a little cooler.
Sunwoo had been considering taking another cold shower (his fourth) when he heard a soft knock at his door. With a groan, he propped himself up on his elbows as the door opened and a head of pink hair popped through the doorway.
“Hey. Have you eaten?”
“Why? Do you have something else you don’t want to eat and you need a way to dispose of it?” Sunwoo bit back, still a little bitter about the peaches incident.
He’d been oddly really touched when Chanhee had offered him and Eric a plate of peeled peaches, neatly cut up, only to discover that Chanhee hadn't wanted to eat them because they had become hard, so he used the maknaes to get rid of them.
“I said I was sorry!” his hyung pouted. “It’s not like they were bad or anything. You were probably going to eat them later. I just made it easy for you.”
Sunwoo raised an eyebrow. “Seriously? Stop hanging you with Hyunjae hyung. You can't save yourself every time with the use of pretty words.”
Chanhee rolled his eyes and stepped into the room, shutting the door silently before stepping closer to Sunwoo’s bed. All it took was a moment, just one breath, a simple blink of his eyes, and suddenly, Chanhee was on top of him, his face a mere inch apart from Sunwoo’s.
He wasn’t touching him and when Sunwoo noticed, he wondered for a second whether it was good or bad. The elder had a knee on the bed, positioned between Sunwoo’s open legs, with his hands holding him up on either side of Sunwoo.
“I don’t need pretty words to get what I want. I’m pretty enough as is, don’t you think?” he whispered, blue eyes glistening with an emotion so deep, Sunwoo couldn't quite decipher it.
Nervously, the younger swallowed and slowly nodded, eyes dropping instinctively to Chanhee’s lips and back up instantly, a red flush covering his face in embarrassment.
The corner of Chanhee’s lips quirked up slightly and he leaned even closer, letting his gaze drop slowly, from Sunwoo’s gorgeous eyes, to his cute nose and finally to his plump, pink lips, and then back up before he spoke.
“I’m sorry, Sunwoo-yah. Please forgive me.”
In that moment, Sunwoo came to the terrifying realization that of Chanhee had asked for the world, Sunwoo would’ve likely driven himself mad in a bid to obtain it.
“Yeah… hyung. We’re cool.”
It was like a switch had been flipped. With a satisfied smile, Chanhee moved away from Sunwoo, hands on his hips when he was standing straight.
“Thank you. Now, I’ll ask again - have you eaten?”
Suddenly rendered speechless by his heart’s erratic reaction to what had transpired earlier, Sunwoo slowly shook his head.
“Okay. I’m about to cook some lunch. Come find me in half an hour, okay? We could go out for ice cream later, as an apology, for the peaches.” somehow, Chanhee was back to his sweet, soft self, making Sunwoo wonder if he’d imagined the entire thing.
“Sure, hyung. That sounds… great.” Sunwoo agreed, finding his voice.
Chanhee beamed and walked back to the door. “Great. don’t forget, half an hour!”
The door silently slipped shut and Sunwoo fell onto his back, his hands coming up to rub his face.
What on earth was that?
The mindless thoughts he had before Chanhee wandered in vanished and he spent the next thirty minutes puzzling over the strange occurrence if it had been real and what it had meant.
He eventually left his room, finding Chanhee easily the kitchen, in the process of feeding Changmin a piece of meat.
Then he remembered that Chanhee had a boyfriend and what happened was just the elder teasing him, like they always do and for a second, a feeling of relief washed over him.
The next, however, arrived with a gnawing feeling of want in his gut. Quickly, he headed to the counter, picked up a pair of chopsticks, and filled his mouth with rice and a piece of beef.
“I didn’t know you were so hungry.” Chanhee blinked apologetically. “I would’ve started cooking earlier.”
Sunwoo shrugged, focused on the meal in front of him, determined to use it to bury those strange feelings swarming inside him.
Changmin tugs at Chanhee’s shirt and points at his face, pouting when Chanhee hands him the chopsticks.
“That was a curtsey, not a commitment. Do it yourself.”
“You’re mean.” Changmin pouts, his dimples on full display as he turns to Sunwoo. “Isn’t he just the worst?”
Sunwoo wanted to remind Changmin that the elder was the one dating said worst, but he couldn't bring himself to even look at Chanhee, so he offered another pitiful shrug.
Chanhee gasped in outrage while Changmin giggled, reaching for the former’s hand as it rose to no doubt descend on Sunwoo’s arm, lacing his fingers through Chanhee’s smaller ones.
“Don’t be mad, I’m just teasing. Sunwoo knows you’re the best, right Sunwoo?”
He looked up reflexively because he wasn’t expecting to be called and barely had time to register his mistake before he found himself trapped beneath their gaze. They were both staring innocently at him, but there was an edge he wasn’t quite familiar with, something he’d never quite seen, despite the countless hours he’s spent with both of them, together and sometimes separately.
They were waiting for a reply from him and his cheeks were stuffed and he couldn't seem to swallow with them watching him expectantly. They were watching each other now, the air serious all of a sudden and Sunwoo couldn't breathe-
“Did you make any ramen, hyung?” Eric questioned, suddenly wandering into the kitchen, heading straight to Sunwoo and taking his chopsticks from him.
“No, I didn’t-”
“Eric! I’m about to do a vlive, wanna join? I’m gonna order some black bean noodles.” Changmin offered, rising from the chair.
Eric’s face lit up and Sunwoo snorted, finally freeing his mouth, taking the offered glass of water from Chanhee.
“Sure, hyung! Are we leaving now?”
“Yup,” Changmin smiled, gently adjusting Chanhee’s bangs, his eyes fond and soft. “Let me grab a few things and we’ll be on our way.”
The gnawing feeling returned and Sunwoo reached for his chopsticks in Eric’s grasp, stilling as Changmin’s fingers comb through his hair.
“I’ll see you later, Sunwoo. Be good.”
A shiver ran down his spine and he dumbly nodded, unable to complain as Eric steals another piece of meat before running off.
Chanhee replaced it with a few from his own plate without looking at Sunwoo, with his attention on his phone. Sunwoo felt so lost, it was dizzying. The rest of the meal passed by in a blur and after, Chanhee took him to a convenience store and bought his favorite flavor of ice cream.
At that point, things had turned to normal with Chanhee scrolling through twitter and reading a few tweets from their fans and laughing at the ridiculous ones with him.
It was so normal, so much like them.
And so, Sunwoo tried to ignore the urge to hold Chanhee’s hand and kiss him.
**
Changmin had always been something of an enigma to Sunwoo. His boundless energy could either be channeled positively during grueling dance practice sessions, with him being the only encouraging voice in the middle of groans and pants of exhaustion… or it could spell out trouble when he decided to use it to support his quest for mischief.
“Hyunggg…” Sunwoo pleaded for the tenth time, hoping that this time, he wouldn't need to use too many words for the other to get his point.
No such luck.
“Come on, Sunwoo-yah!” Changmin pushed and pulled at the younger, his voice getting louder with each syllable. “I don’t wanna do it alone!”
Sunwoo was too tired for this. Lately, he hadn't been sleeping well and it was affecting every aspect of his life. He was losing patience, missing counts during dance practice, and his chest felt hollow and heavy which each passing day.
It was all too much and he just wanted to rest. Then, out of nowhere, Changmin had appeared at his doorway and demanded his company for a vlive. After Sunwoo had told him no the first four times, Changmin made his way into the room fully and shut the door.
Instantly, Sunwoo was taken back to the day something similar had occurred with Chanhee and tensed up, belting out stern refusal with each of Changmin’s pleas.
He was so exhausted and none of this was helping.
“I don’t want to do a live… hyung.” his tolerance slipped farther out of reach, expression faltering when Changmin stepped closer and ran his fingers through Sunwoo’s red hair.
“I’m lonely-”
“Then go do it with your boyfriend!” Sunwoo snapped, smacking Changmin’s hand away, heat flooding his veins.
Changmin stared at him, eyes wide as silence filled the room. Sunwoo instantly felt sorry, mouth falling open to apologize, the words freezing in his throat at the sight of Changmin’s expression.
“I’m sorry I bothered you, Sunwoo. I guess I’ll just go solo.”
“No, hyung-” Sunwoo stepped out of bed in such a hurry, he crashed into the other, barely managing to gain some balance and stop the two of them from finding themselves on the floor.
Changmin’s arms were tightly braced around his waist, his gaze filled with concern and a sudden longing to see Changmin smile, with his dimples on full display, washed over Sunwoo. And once more, he felt deeply apologetic.
“I’m sorry, hyung.”
“What for? You’re typically a klutz, we all know that.” Changmin teased, slowly moving the both of them towards Sunwoo’s bed.
“You’re making it hard for me to apologize.”
“Maybe I don’t want you to.”
Everything about Changmin was so sincere, always has been and Sunwoo had a feeling that the other was never going to lose that side of him. On-screen, people often pointed at Juyeon, Hyunjae, Kevin, and Younghoon as the outspoken and brave ones, because they were the ones who almost never backed away from a challenge. To Sunwoo, Changmin was the strongest in that department, always eager and willing to be real and was always loud about it.
Sunwoo vaguely noticed that Changmin was still holding onto him and his lips parting to ask for his release, pursed when Changmin seemingly read his mind and slowly lowered him onto the bed.
“I’m the one who should be sorry, Woo-yah. I should’ve known you weren’t in the mood. I’ll do it myself.”
Changmin was also one of the real babies in the group. He hardly ever demanded any attention, but when he did, it was impossible to refuse him because of how helplessly adorable he was. Half the time, it wasn’t on purpose, but Sunwoo would bet their win of Road to Kingdom that this time, Changmin knew exactly what he was doing to the younger.
Suddenly this was much, much more than a vlive.
“I’ll do it with you.”
“Sunwoo-”
“Buy me waffles. Waffles or no deal.”
Changmin seemed surprised, smiling seconds later. “Anything else, Sunshine?”
That darn nickname. It always sent a shiver down Sunwoo’s spine whenever Changmin uttered it and this time was no different.
“Boba tea. You shouldn’t have to get my company for cheap when Deobis would spend millions to hang out with me.”
Changmin merely shrugged, pulling out his phone. “I’ll get you whatever you want, Sunshine. Always. You ready to go?”
Changmin’s mumur of ‘sunshine’ tossed away his feeble attempt to recollect himself and suddenly, he regretted changing his mind.
“Shut up.” Sunwoo mumbled, rising to his feet to find his mask and shoes, pretending Changmin’s laugh didn’t make his heart skip a few beats.
The vlive lasted for an hour, during which Changmin held his end of the bargain and ordered waffles for them both and two medium lattes with bobas.
They returned to the dorm and Sunwoo crashed on the couch, barely able to function, much less question when Changmin sat next to him, guiding the youngest’s head to his lap, stroking his head gently.
Sunwoo easily lost the fight to stay conscious under the warm touch and succumbed to the waiting darkness, just as a pair of soft lips brush against his forehead and another gently pressed against his cheek.