Work Text:
“Good Lord! Minho, you have to stop entering the club room like that!” Changbin whined as their club president slammed the club room’s door open, while screaming like a mad man.
“Who are you to complain? I’ve brought great news for all of us! Our most anticipated event of the year is finally here!” He exclaims, with too much excitement radiating from him.
“The school festival, and our collaboration with the school gazette club?” Jisung asks, as he spins the office chair he was sitting on, while maneuvering it towards Minho.
“Okay that sounds fun, but this one’s way better!” Minho then raises an A3-sized poster that had the words ‘Camon Photography Contest’ as the biggest elements of the poster. He then places it on the table in the middle of their slightly cramped club room, and the other three members gather on the sides of the table to check it out. “Ta-da! A Photography Contest by Camon! As compared to our past contests, this one’s quite big, since it’s a national competition. I just got back from a meeting with our supervisor and activities coordinator, and they’re allowing the club to join the contest! So let’s do our best to win!”
“Eh… I don’t know.” Seungmin finally speaks up to the rest of the members. “It’s a national contest… We’ll have to strive harder. Our efforts right now aren’t enough, I guess?”
“Oi, Seungmin! Don’t be such a downer!” Minho playfully scolds him. “We’ve been doing great in inter school competitions, as well as regional photography contests! I’m sure, stepping up a bit would be a great challenge for all of us!”
“Besides, we also have you as the photography club’s dazzling gem to get us that win!” Jisung adds, making Seungmin facepalm over the proclamation of trust and sudden pressure they’re bringing to him.
Seungmin is a name that any school in their region recognizes, especially if you’re active in the different photography and film events held regionally. He’s mostly recognized as a usual placer in photography contests, as well as an active participant in filmmaking competitions. Throughout their years in highschool, Seungmin has always brought honor to their school’s photography club, by consecutively winning yearly regional inter school photo contests, as well as small intra school photography events.
Truly, he’s known to be a master of this craft and could be trusted with such things. But like any other genius, he was suffering the darkest pits of a creative burnout and lacked the inspiration to continue with what he does best.
“Yeah, I don’t know about this year.” He told everyone. “What’s the theme of the event anyways?”
Minho picks up his phone and quickly does an internet search for more of the event’s details. Everyone was waiting for his response, but the area of the photography club room had a very low pick-up on the WiFi signal in their school. He then raises his phone towards the direction of the window, in the hopes of getting more signal to connect to the internet. As soon as the page pops up, he reads and tells the rest of the members. “Happiness… Or at least, that’s what I’m seeing on their website right now.”
“Yeah, definitely not happening.” With that, Seungmin confirms his lack of confidence towards the mentioned contest.
“Oh c’mon, Seungs! You know we believe in you!” Changbin says as he rubs the taller male’s back.
“Also, there’s always four of us in the club. The win of one, is the win of all. We’re a team, after all.” Minho tries to cheer his team up, getting Changbin and Jisung to agree with what he said, but Seungmin just flops himself on one of the office chairs in the room and sighs. “How about this: Every Saturday until the week before the deadline of submission of entries, we go somewhere to do photowalks and find our personal perfect photos! Then, let’s check up on everybody’s entries before we submit them all together. Would that be good?”
“Actually, I’d like that!” Changbin agrees.
“Same goes for me! At least, I have a reason to go out for the weekends without getting scolded.” Jisung says excitedly.
With that all of them started discussing places where they could hold their photowalks. Even if he wasn’t feeling it, Seungmin decided to stay and listen to their discussion. He tried wanting to engage in the conversation but only ended up gaining a bit of panic as to how he couldn’t think of something. Which was why he gathered his things and asked Minho if he could be dismissed from the meeting early, in which the older understood and agreed.
As soon as he got out of the club room, he closed the door and walked towards the wall that was adjacent to it. He leans on the wall and closes his eyes to calm himself down from his thoughts. He took a few deep breaths, as well, while a lot of thoughts were running in his head.
‘Ah this is pathetic… The uncertainty of this burnout is really taking a toll on me. I’m not even sure if I could be passionate with photography ever again. I’m so afraid, I may never get rid of it… I don’t know how to find happiness, when the one thing that makes me happy isn’t even making me happy anymore!’
As soon as he was done thinking, Seungmin opened his eyes and saw a figure in the corner of his eyes. He was startled by it, but was complacent after recognizing that it was his best friend and clubmate, Changbin. “H-hello?” he greets him, somewhat confused with why his friend was watching him there.
Changbin examines Seungmin as he slings the camera bag to his body, before finally talking to him. “I’m guessing you forgot?”
“Huh?”
“Well, I can’t blame you. I got a bit excited with the photo contest, but thankfully I did not forget about it.”
“Bin, you’re absolutely making zero sense, right now.”
“Seungs, it’s Friday today! Last week, we planned to go to the oceanarium together after the club meeting! When you exited the club room a while ago, I was afraid the tickets might go to waste, so I quickly dismissed myself from the club meeting to try and catch you. Good thing you haven’t left yet.”
“Well, I don’t know, Bin-”
“You don’t have to take photos, if that’s what you’re worried about. I simply brought a camera so I could take my own photos of the place. We could still enjoy the short trip, without having to document much of it.” Changbin smiles at Seungmin and reaches out a hand for him to take. “So what do you say?”
Seungmin finally grabs Changbin’s hand and smiles back. “Alright! Lead the way.”
The oceanarium they plan to go to, was a new tourist destination in their area. It was completed a few weeks ago, but it was just last weekend, when they had a chance to score tickets for the place because of Changbin’s older sister’s connection. Additionally, the place was not too far from their school. In fact, it’s only a 10-minute walk from the back entrance of their school. Which was why it was an easy trip even if the two friends were very lazy walkers.
While the two were walking, Changbin made a mental note to himself to hold Seungmin’s hand. He noticed how uncomfortable the younger male got from their discussion in the club room a while ago, and was concerned after seeing Seungmin try to collect himself by breathing heavily with his head leaned up against the wall. So in order to calm him down a bit, he wanted to help by holding his hand.
Surprisingly for Seungmin, he found comfort from Changbin while they were walking. There were times where he would see people that looked so happy, he couldn't help but pity himself. So every time he encountered people who seemed to be having the time of their life, he kept squeezing the hand of the older male while mentally telling himself that he’ll find his happiness back, one day.
‘Ah… Everyone around me just seems so happy and full of life… I envy them. I just want to be happy by doing something I love. I don’t want to be exhausted of my craft anymore, because every single day that passes by, becomes more and more frustrating for me. I hate it.’
“We’re here!” Changbin exclaimed to his friend as he raised both of his hands. “Let’s go!” He then drags Seungmin as he rushes towards the entrance of the place. This made Seungmin shift his attention towards the oceanarium, and away from his problems.
As soon as they got inside, the pair of friends were quickly captivated by the first room that they entered. It was a dark room that had aquariums filled with a variety of fish in every tank. The two checked out each tank and read some of the displayed posters that described the types of fish that were present in the place. In the middle of the room was a cylindrical tank filled with seahorses which the both of them talked to, before moving on to the biggest part of the place.
When they got to the entrance of the great tunnel, both of them stopped on their tracks and were appreciating the view. Changbin pulled out the camera to take a photo of the place, while Seungmin continued walking through the great tunnel.
The great tunnel was a tunnel-shaped aquarium filled with a wide variety of fish from the size of a tiny clownfish, to the biggest of marine creatures that could fit the tank (such as a manta ray). There were also coral reefs planted at the bottom of the body of water in the tank, and everything felt beautiful and alive.
In that moment, Seungmin felt like a child again, tapping the tank when a huge sea creature came closer to him and talking to the tiny fish as they swam in the water. Changbin was simply enjoying the view of his friend. He knew he needed that rest and peace of mind, so he’s glad they came to the oceanarium today, even if their passes could be extended for a week… ‘But he doesn’t need to know about that.’
Changbin continued with the picture-taking of the marine creatures. Just as he was about to take a photo of the school of clownfish he saw, he was startled by Seungmin’s loud gasp. He quickly looked away from the viewfinder of the camera to check on his friend, who was now running towards a certain spot in the tunnel. Seungmin then shamelessly sits on the floor and starts holding his cheeks out of extreme happiness. Changbin then follows his friend and smiles at the view that was in front of him. With that, he squats beside him, positions his camera and waits for the right moment to click it for a picture. When Seungmin placed his nose on the tank, in front of the starfish, with his eyes closed and his smile was as wide as ever, Changbin clicked on his camera and became extremely satisfied with the photo he just took. He was confident to claim that it was the prettiest photo that he got of his best friend.
Seungmin didn’t even notice that Changbin took a photo of him. He was just laughing at the movements of the starfish and kept telling it to enjoy his marine life.
“It’s really cute, isn’t it, Seungmin?” Changbin finally speaks.
Seungmin was surprised that his friend, whom he did not notice, was already squatting beside him. He looked at Changbin and nodded with a soft smile. “The starfish really looked pretty.” He tells him.
With that, Changbin stands up and offers a hand to Seungmin. “So, are you ready to see more from the oceanarium?” He asks him.
“Yep!” Seungmin held on to Changbin’s hand for support as he stood up from sitting. He felt his legs numb a bit, causing him to lean towards Changbin and hold onto the older’s shoulder for additional support.
“Are you good?”
“Yeah, hehe… My legs just numbed up after sitting for a while.”
“Don’t worry, I got you,” Changbin says as he supports Seungmin in walking, until the numbness in his legs were gone. With that, they continued and finished their oceanarium tour, before going home.
✤✤✤✤✤
“You must be really numb to not realize it by now, Seungmin!” Han exclaims.
The two were currently waiting for the other two members of the photography club in the location that Changbin chose for them. It was a small cafe, located near the river: a place where he and Changbin usually go to when they need to edit photos for the school paper or other pictorials for their school. It also became a place for them to relax after school hours, or do homework together before going home. Both the food and drinks, and the small memories they make, are what makes the place extremely comfortable for Seungmin.
But specifically today, for some reason, Seungmin really appreciates the location of their photowalk today. ’It really feels like home here… Like always.’
“Huh? Realize what?” Seungmin asks Jisung. “And why are you speaking so passionately as you tell me this?”
Jisung just sighs as he violently takes a piece of cake with his fork, and chomps on it. “Changbin… He likes you.”
“Oh.” Seungmin reacted calmly. But mentally, he was extremely happy with the information he just got. It was as if a switch was turned on, and the gloomy thoughts were turned into great things. “That’s nice,” he adds while smiling up to Jisung, before taking a sip from his iced coffee. He could feel his cheeks burn at the thought of his best friend liking him, which was why he was trying to keep himself looking composed.
“Hmm…” Jisung was observing Seungmin’s movements. He then tilted his head and made an expression of realization, after an idea popped out of his head. “Does this mean that you, perhaps, like Changbin too?”
“Who likes Changbin?” Minho presents himself in front of the two lads, coming in a bit late for their supposed meet-up time. “Seungmin likes Changbin?”
At this point, Seungmin just looks away from the two, while taking another sip from his cup of iced coffee.
If he was going to be honest with himself, Seungmin has always liked his best friend. He just was not vocal or expressive with it, until this moment that Jisung brought it up to him. His feelings for his best friend were something he pushed aside, since he got too caught up with my creative burnout. He never got the time to focus and assess my emotions towards him.
“Oi ya! You two! What are you doing to Seungs?” Changbin said a little loudly, causing the other three to cover our faces with our hands, out of shame.
“Be quiet, you idiot!” Seungmin scolds him. “Just place your food tray on the table, and let’s just all start taking photos-”
“Or maybe we could eat first?” Jisung suggests as he grabs a piece of churros from Changbin’s tray. With that, Changbin swats Jisung’s hand, as if it were an unwanted mosquito.
“You all are too noisy for this place,” Minho says as he sets up his camera. “Anyways, you all can decide whether you would like to eat something first or immediately take photos. Just a reminder that we’ll only be staying here for one to two hours as a time limit.”
With that signal, Seungmin tried to look for inspiration around the cafe, and finally stood up to freely take photos of different things and different people. He went to take photos of people with their pets, the staff of the cafe who were happily serving people, and even the staff who was fixing the chalkboard that was placed at the entrance of the cafe, for the special menu of the day.
He also tried taking photos from outside, where he saw his other two club members enjoying themselves while talking to each other, in their seats by the window of the cafe. He positions himself, trying to find the best angle to take a photo of them. He quickly clicks on his camera and snaps a photo of his two friends, but is soon startled by a tap on his shoulder.
“Boo!” Minho says and laughs at Seungmin’s reaction.
“I hate you for that. You scared me!” Seungmin says as he hits their club president.
“Mhm… Sure.” Minho mumbles while looking proudly at Seungmin. “I’m glad you’re holding a camera today… And you look a bit different too.”
“I do? Even Jisung kept saying it.”
“Then, I guess you must be having a good day! Let’s get back to the cafe and eat? Let the other two have their turn in taking photos.”
“Alright, if you say so,”
With that, Minho and Seungmin entered the cafe and chatted while consuming the coffee and cake that they ordered. The other two members also had their turn in taking some photos as well, stretching out their creativity while aiming to find the perfect photo to represent happiness. Soon, they all gathered up, one last time to discuss the submission of entries within their club, as well as the submission of entries for the contest itself. As soon as the meeting was finished, Minho and Jisung dismissed themselves, while Seungmin and Changbin stayed in the cafe.
He didn’t know with his best friend, but there was something different with the atmosphere as soon as they were left with each other. The silence was starting to become awkward, which was why Seungmin decided to engage in a conversation, even if he felt nervous. He looked at Changbin, who was already looking at him dearly, and felt the heat rise up in his cheeks.
"Ah! Thank you for today, Changbin," he tells him. The older lad just smirked with his soft stare directed towards me.
"You’re always welcome, Seungs. I don't think you've noticed this, but you seem genuinely happy today. So, I'm really glad that I chose this cafe for our photowalk." he tells Seungmin. The younger male can’t help but smile while looking at his almost empty cup of coffee, and playing with the small piece of his leftover donut on his plate.
Seungmin wasn’t even going to deny, but he knew he took his time today to think through how he feels about his best friend. With that, so much emotion was rushing inside of him, that he couldn’t help but become all shy in front of Changbin.
“You know, I was hoping that you’d actually really enjoy today,” Changbin says as he grabs Seungmin’s hand and kisses his knuckles. “You’ve been pushing yourself too hard lately, and I could tell that you really want to get out of the burnout as soon as possible. But don’t be too harsh on what you could do, okay? Take your time on things… Just know that I’ll always be there for you.”
“Bin… Thank you, so much! I don’t deserve you.”
“Well, you deserve the best, don’t you? You know, I’d always try to become that best for you.”
“Cheesy!”
“But it’s true!”
With that the two of them giggled at their foolish conversation.
“You know, a certain club member told me that you liked me,” Seungmin tells Changbin, to shift their conversation.
“Oh really now? What did he say then” Changbin asks, keeping up with the teasing energy that Seungmin was projecting.
“He just really told me that you liked me.”
“And what do you have to say about that?”
“Oh c’mon! I just want to know if it’s true! Is it now?”
“What if it is?”
“I won’t answer unless you answer me first!”
“Alright, close your eyes. Then, I’ll tell you.”
Even when he was confused, Seungmin followed Changbin’s instructions and closed his eyes a bit tightly. He was waiting for Changbin to come up to his ear and say the answer, but was surprised when a creamy texture of icing was placed at the bottom of his lips.
“Hey-”
Just as he was about to whine, he felt a pair of lips, suck into the area of his lips where the icing was placed. He lets out a gasp as an initial response. Changbin sucks off the icing from the younger male’s lower lips and looks at Seungmin innocently when he pulls himself away.
“W-what was… that?” Seungmin asked, still shocked by his movements.
“So that’s what it feels like, kissing someone you’ve liked for a long time.” Changbin smirks and chuckles, while looking outside of the window. He then gazes back to Seungmin who’s been blushing madly, this whole time. He was trying to get a hold of himself, but he felt himself melt with the sudden confession. “So, the answer to my question?”
“Q-question?”
“What if it’s true, what are you going to do about it?”
“I don’t know… But I just want to let you know that you mean the most to me, Changbin.”
“Mhm?”
“I like you too.”
✤✤✤✤✤
“OI! LEE MINHO, I HATE YOU!” Changbin screamed with all his might as he entered the club room.
“WHAT? WHY? Didn’t you win the national contest?” Minho argues back.
“Yeah, but I did not know you were going to use THAT photo as my entry?!”
Seungmin was the next to enter their club room, and was surprised to see Changbin and Minho arguing after the announcement of winners for the contest, which had just occurred a few minutes ago. The two were busy arguing, and they completely ignored the presence of every person who tried to enter their room.
“So… What’s with this situation?” Jisung asked Seungmin, as he tapped the taller person’s shoulder. Seungmin just shrugged at him, while continuously watching the two. This made Jisung run outside of the club room to get materials to use, to silence their two seniors from arguing.
The next thing they knew, the clanging of a pan and a ladle was heard, along with Jisung’s screaming. “Order in the court! Everybody, order in the court please!”
“Where the hell did you get that?” Minho asked his club member in disbelief.
“From the materials for our cooking class?” Jisung answers truthfully. “Seungmin and I were supposed to enter the club room, but we were met by you two arguing… So I took matters into my own hands!”
“Why were you two fighting anyways?” Seungmin finally asks.
Changbin looks at Minho with pleading eyes. “Please save me from embarrassment.”
“Changbin, literally everyone around the country saw your entry, now you won’t even let them show it?” Minho asks.
“Because the subject’s in the room!”
“You cheesy guy! It was a beautiful image! I’m glad you won.” Minho complimented Changbin, causing the shorter male to get flustered.
“Uhm hello? We’re still here?” Seungmin says. “I haven’t really seen the image yet, so if you’re planning to show it now, then might as well do it!”
“Alright!” Minho pulls out an envelope from one of the folders at the top of the PC in their club room. He opens it and places the image on the table so the other two members could see it. “This is the winner of Camon’s Photography Contest for this year.”
“Damn! That is really pretty!” Jisung exclaims out of amazement for the piece.
Seungmin was surprised to see his face in the image. It was the moment where he and Changbin went to the oceanarium, and he started building his world while talking to the starfish he saw at the grand tunnel. “So, it’s a photo of… me?”
“Seungs, baby. I’m sorry!” Changbin screamed as he hugged Seungmin from behind, and buried his face into the taller male’s back.
“Hey! It’s fine!” Seungmin giggled as he grabbed one of Changbin’s hands and kissed them. “It’s already out there, and I’m glad I’m a part of the winning piece.”
“Ah, Changbin… I didn’t know you were the cheesy type of boyfriend who takes photos of their lover, while they’re in a vulnerable state,” Jisung teases.
“For the love of God, please stop embarrassing me!” Changbin whines, while still hugging Seungmin.
"But in all honesty, this photo really brings joy to people. Seungmin's happiness while playing with the starfish really gets to you. Plus the way it was edited, really makes it seem vibrant and filled with life, matching the festival of colors to the expression shown in the picture. Overall, it's really beautifully shot, so good job on this one, Changbin! Congratulations!"
“T-thank you, I guess? But I mostly wouldn't have done it without the subject of the perfect photo.” Changbin then kisses the shoulder of the person he’s hugging, before preparing to celebrate their win through a trip to a barbecue house.