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"This isn't working, hyung. Can we do that part again?"
Soonyoung hears their hyung sigh deeply, tiredness evident with the way his shoulders are hunched.
"You know what? We need a break." Bumzu turns his chair to face Jihoon, who is looking intently at the monitor as he tries to figure out what to modify in the arrangement. Jihoon looks like he was about to protest when Bumzu cut him off. "Jihoon-ah, let's rest a bit, okay? Then we can continue after. I'll order food for us."
Jihoon couldn't do anything but nod. He removes the headphones then plops himself on the couch next to Soonyoung, grabbing the nearest pillow to bury his face into.
It's been over nine hours since they stepped inside Bumzu's studio. In those nine hours, a good two-thirds of the time was spent constantly revising the same track with various sounds and arrangements. Soonyoung feels Jihoon’s frustration seeping through, hour after hour, hair disheveled from trying to wrack his brains out to find the perfect sound. His game face has morphed into an exasperated look he wears whenever things do not go as planned.
Bumzu is right; they need this break.
“Jihoonie.” Soonyoung calls softly, which goes ignored by the other guy. “Hoonie, wanna lie down?” He tries one more time.
The proposition makes Jihoon put the pillow down gingerly. He peers at Soonyoung with sad eyes; Soonyoung’s heart breaks a little. Jihoon rarely ever shows this side, so today must have really taken a toll on him.
Soonyoung pats his lap, a soft smile upon his lips. This seems to do the trick as Jihoon scoots over to him to lie down. He squirms until he finds a comfortable position and immediately takes Soonyoung’s hand to place it on top of his head for pats.
This draws a laugh from Soonyoung while he caresses Jihoon’s hair gently. He cards his fingers through the ash blonde locks, a gesture that makes the producer feel calm and relaxed. This does the trick because Jihoon soon closes his eyes with a tiny smile.
However, he still senses how tense Jihoon’s shoulders are with every breath he takes, the weight upon his shoulders is heavy. Soonyoung often wishes he could take some of it off his boyfriend. He always does his best to do so, sometimes by being silly just to make Jihoon laugh (it doesn’t work as often as he wants), or by bringing him several cans of coke for his much needed energy boost, or simply being there, lending his shoulder for Jihoon to rest upon.
Whatever he does, he knows it immensely helps Jihoon in one way or another, even though he’s not vocal about it.
The ministrations continue for the next few minutes, when Soonyoung remembers the post he saw on Weverse earlier that day. He stumbled upon a video of him and Jihoon back when they were still trainees. It's a short clip of them with Jihoon on the piano, and him hovering over Jihoon's shoulder, playfully placing a chin on his shoulder while looking at the camera. He remembers clutching his stomach from laughing too much after Jihoon pushed him away from him.
The strong feeling of nostalgia hits Soonyoung. They were so young back then. Their only worries that time were doing well on their lessons, and passing their monthly evaluations. Jihoon wasn’t into composing then; he was still focused on dancing alongside Soonyoung.
When he suggested trying out composition to Jihoon, it was only to improve his sense of rhythm. A few years later, he became their group’s main producer. Soonyoung couldn’t be any more prouder.
“Hoonie, love?” Soonyoung is answered with a soft ‘hmm’ from Jihoon. It takes a few moments before he speaks again. “You’re doing great, my love.” His tone is soft and gentle, but full of reassurance.
“Things aren’t going right, Soonyoung. This needs to be perfect.”
Soonyoung pulls Jihoon up to place both of his palms to cradle Jihoon’s pouting face. “And it will be perfect.” His thumbs caress the apple of Jihoon’s cheeks. “You know why? Because you’re Woozi.” Soonyoung tries his best not to choke up because he’s suddenly feeling overwhelmed with emotions. He worries for Jihoon too much, especially when he’s in this kind of head space.
“Right now it may not be what you’ve envisioned, but you’ll get there.” He says this with full conviction. Soonyoung knows Jihoon can do it. “You always do.”
Jihoon launches himself at Soonyoung. He clings to Soonyoung tightly, and it is returned with equal fervor from the other leader. He feels Jihoon heaving slightly, no doubt trying to suppress his own emotions, so Soonyoung tries to channel all the love and comfort he could give to Jihoon in this hug.
It becomes quiet, save for their steady breathing and beating hearts.
“Thank you, Soonyoung, for always being there.” Jihoon speaks after a while when he has considerably calmed down. “You always know what to do and say. How do you do that?”
“I have superpowers, remember?” Soonyoung chides to keep the atmosphere light. “It’s the least I can do, Jihoon. And besides, we promised each other, right? I’ll always have your back.”
“I know. And I’ll have yours. Always.”
They stay in each other’s presence, basking in this rare moment in comfortable silence. Sometimes, grand words and gestures aren’t needed to bring comfort between the two of them.
“Do you know how I power through these challenging times?” Jihoon asks Soonyoung after a while.
Soonyoung loosens their hug then proceeds to ask, “How so?”
Jihoon leans forward for a soft peck on Soonyoung’s lips. With a bright smile, he answers. “Because I have you, my love.”