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There's a knock at the door.
Mingyu frowns apprehensively from where he lies on his bed. He wasn't expecting any company and he definitely wasn't sure if he wanted it if he was being honest with himself. It was late and he planned on having a quiet rest of the night alone, especially after what had happened during the day. However, he stands and trudges through the hall and towards the front door anyway.
He's fully prepared to have to shoo someone away, but when he checks the door camera, he falters. His eyes widen and he immediately types in the password of the padlock, yanking the door open when it beeps.
"Hyung?" He blurts in surprise.
Jeonghan stands there, visibly tired and clad in a soft sweater and sweatpants. Despite his obvious fatigue, an attempt of a smile adorns his face. In his hands is a moderately sized white box. Mingyu eyes it curiously.
"I thought that you might want some company...?" Jeonghan chews on his lip nervously.
They had seen each other less than an hour ago, but it didn't seem that way now that Mingyu had thought about it. Between the tense meeting amongst the members and their manager, sans Wonwoo, and the uncomfortable atmosphere, there weren't many moments where they could actually just be in each other's proximity.
Mingyu moves aside silently, giving Jeonghan room to enter. Jeonghan shoots him a small but grateful smile and toes his shoes off in the entryway. Mingyu then leads them through the hall and towards the space between the living room and kitchen.
"What's in the box?" he asks. Jeonghan doesn't answer, instead opting to sit the box on the kitchen island. He motions for Mingyu to come closer and the latter obliges easily. Once they're both standing over it, Jeonghan lifts a flap to reveal what’s inside. Mingyu feels his throat go dry.
Inside the box is a small cake— probably just enough for the two of them to share. It's covered in a light blue frosting, pale pink hearts decorating the top. 'Happy Birthday Minggu' is spelled in white, loopy frosting, and it's so obviously a Jeonghan thing to write if the nickname is anything to go by.
"I know you said you didn't want to celebrate today," Jeonghan says quietly as he gauges his reaction. "But I thought it'd be nice to at least have some cake. We don't even have to put any candles on it if that's too much. We can just eat it like it's an everyday cake, y'know?"
"Hyung," Mingyu interrupts. Jeonghan looks back at him in caution, afraid that he might've overstepped.
"There should be a candle somewhere in the drawer by the sink. We can use that." The smile he gets from Jeonghan in response is nothing short of rewarding.
Jeonghan giddily shuffles through the drawer, until he successfully finds a bright pink candle and a small lighter. The candle doesn't match the cake at all, but Jeonghan could care less as he plops it in the aquamarine icing. Mingyu can't help but smile affectionately at his eagerness.
"You seem awfully happy to sing to me," he notes as Jeonghan focuses on getting the candle to light.
"Don't flatter yourself too much. I'm just really craving cake right now." Jeonghan grins teasingly, a familiar playful glint in his eyes.
"If you say so, hyung."
Jeonghan hums in delight, clearly satisfied at Mingyu's reluctant participation.
"Such a good dongsaeng, aren't you?" Jeonghan pats his cheek, ignoring the latter's groan of protest. He passes Mingyu and grabs the cake from the countertop, steps cautious as he attempts to keep the candle from extinguishing by protecting it with his hand. The room grows quiet He quietly counts backward from three and gently places the dish on the table.
"Happy birthday to you..."
Mingyu feels like crying when Jeonghan begins to sing in that annoyingly sweet voice of his, clapping along softly with a smile on his face. His expression is different from before, the humorous atmosphere dying down. Jeonghan's face is serene and calm, and his eyes are crinkled at the sides, looking at Mingyu with utmost endearment. The fact that it's just the two of them huddled over Mingyu's dining table makes the moment strangely intimate. Like it's a secret just between the two of them.
"Happy birthday dear Mingyu. Happy birthday to you~"
Jeonghan cheers and claps as Mingyu ducks shyly.
"Make a wish, Minggu-ah."
Mingyu stares at the obnoxiously pink candle flickering about, the wax starting to drip down the sides. He's old enough to realize that making a wish is a relatively meaningless tradition, but he can't help closing his eyes anyway. He doesn't have to think long at all before he's opening them and blowing the flame out. Jeonghan's claps are distant in his ears as he gazes at the smoke dissipating in the air.
He hopes his wish finds its way to Wonwoo somehow.
By the time he looks up, Jeonghan is sitting down after what seems like invading his drawers for two forks. He hands one to Mingyu and waits for him to take a timid bite before digging in himself.
Mingyu takes a few small bites of the cake, not necessarily out of hunger, but because he didn't want Jeonghan's effort to go to waste. He can feel Jeonghan's analyzing gaze on him as he stares at the table. While he does appreciate the sentiment, he doesn't think he can stomach any more of the dessert for now.
He hears jeonghan sigh and walk towards him, gently taking the fork out of mingyu's hand and setting it in the cake box. He slides the cake aside and moves to stand in between mingyu's legs, hands tenderly cupping the younger's jaw and thumbs caressing his cheeks. He makes no move to make Mingyu look at him, waiting for him to respond to the touch instead.
He makes a noise of surprise when Mingyu's arms wrap around his waist firmly, pulling him impossibly close. Mingyu rests his head against Jeonghan's torso, shoulders slumping slightly in momentary relief when Jeonghan's hands immediately reach to comb through his hair.
"Gyu?" Jeonghan breaks the silence. Mingyu doesn't answer verbally but finally raises his head, eyes tired and face pensive. Jeonghan smooths his furrowed brows with the pads of his thumps and silently chides himself for wanting to kiss away the crease in between them.
"Do you want me to stay the night?"
Mingyu breaks eye contact and fiddles with the back of Jeonghan's sweater.
"Please?" He mumbles.
"Okay," Jeonghan agrees easily. He pats Mingyu on the back once before gently pushing him away by his shoulders, resulting in a quiet whine of protest from the latter. Jeonghan rolls his eyes in mock annoyance.
"Oh, stop it you big baby," he says while successfully removing himself from Mingyu's arms. Unfortunately, he fails at evading Mingyu's fast attempt at grabbing onto his hands.
"I have to put the cake up." Jeonghan fusses but doesn't try to pull his hands away.
"Just leave it. Come to bed with me."
"Mingyu, it'll take like two minutes tops."
"Hyung..." Mingyu pouts in a last-ditch effort. Jeonghan stares at him with narrowed eyes until he, eventually, sighs in defeat. He'll let Mingyu have his way for now, but only because it's his birthday.
"Manipulative brat," Jeonghan mutters under his breath, but Mingyu knows that means he's won and immediately treks towards his bedroom, pulling the older with him. Jeonghan huffs and Mingyu squeezes his hand in response.
-
Later, after they're all cleaned up and cuddled against each other, Mingyu ultimately decides to bring up what's been plaguing his mind all day.
"Hyung?"
"Hmm?" jeonghan hums sleepily, his slender fingers idly drawing shapes onto Mingyu's chest. Mingyu shivers.
"Do you think he's going to be okay?"
Jeonghan stops what he's doing and raises his head to analyze Mingyu's face. The younger's expression is troubled— guilty.
"I don't know Mingyu-ah," Jeonghan says truthfully. He reaches a hand up to comb a stray strand of hair behind Mingyu's ear. "But I hope Wonwoo finds comfort in knowing that we'll all be there, regardless of what happens. That's the least we can do."
Jeonghan shows no sign of being at unease, but Mingyu knows better. He can tell that the older feels just as helpless as he does.
Jeonghan eventually sighs and sits up to cup Mingyu by his cheek, pressing a chaste kiss against the corner of his lips.
"It's late. We'll talk more tomorrow, okay?" He asks but makes no room for argument as he reclaims his spot, molded to Mingyu's torso. "Let's sleep for now."
Mingyu reluctantly hums in agreement and moves to lay on his side, arms caging the older flush against his chest. Jeonghan instinctively snuggles into the warmth. Mingyu's lips quirk up in amusement. Jeonghan always was clingy when he was sleepy. Mingyu pecks his forehead before resting his chin on his hair, fingers gently carding through black locks.
"Thank you for being with me today," he whispers. The feint snore he gets in response makes him smile fondly, and he finally allows himself to succumb to sleep.