Archive of Our Own ^beta

“Have you guys ever seen Changbin’s mansion?” Felix asks as he’s doing his friends’ slash teammates’ makeup for the party, and Jisung shakes his head just as Felix holds up the eyeliner. “Sit still, Sungie, I don’t want to smudge the eyeliner!”

Jisung chuckles and apologizes under his breath. “Sorry— but no, I’ve never been there. I don’t assume Hyunjin has ever been there either. Have you?”

Hyunjin confirms from where he’s tying up his long hair, and Felix shakes his head as well. “I’ve never been there either, but I’ve seen some pictures, and apparently it’s huge!”

“No wonder he’s hosting the party there, then,” Jisung comments. “Though— I also wouldn’t be surprised if Changbin isn’t the only one living in a huge mansion.” 

“I would be surprised if Changbin isn’t the only one offering to host a party there,” Hyunjin comments bitterly, and Felix shrugs.

“Maybe.” 

It’s true that their college is filled with stuck-up rich people — the only reason Felix, Hyunjin, Jisung, and most of their soccer team are here is because of a sports scholarship, and most students outside of their team aren’t the nicest about it — but Felix likes giving people a chance. He won’t blame his friends and especially Hyunjin for bearing a grudge, though, he knows that Hyunjin has his reasons for not trusting anyone, but for example Changbin and Minho, who aren’t part of the soccer team but always watch their games despite being just as rich as the other students, are really kind, and a few of Felix’s classmates are nice, too. 

Either way, Felix hopes that they’ll just have fun at the party and that if they come across rich students like Seungmin, who Hyunjin has a… complicated relationship with, that they can set aside their differences for tonight. Felix has seen them go from fighting at every sentence the other utters to at least somewhat okay, so he has hope for them. 

They take their time getting ready and arrive fashionably late at the party. Felix feels like dressing up helped his more introverted friends feel more confident and comfortable in their skin just like it does for Felix. Nevertheless, they look for a more quiet spot after greeting their teammates and getting a drink. Felix might not mind crowds, but he knows his friends do, so he goes along with what is most comfortable for them. 

They find a small group of people sitting on a collection of couches, and Hyunjin seems to be staring at them, so Felix speaks up. 

“Shall we sit with them too? Or—” He stops when he recognizes who are sitting on the couches. “Oh wait, is that Seungmin? But Jeongin is there too? Are they friends? I share a class with Jeongin and he seems really nice?” 

“Yeah, they’re friends as far as I know,” Hyunjin says with a small chuckle, and Felix blushes a bit, embarrassed that he didn’t know. He’d never really paid attention to Seungmin’s friend group, and he knows that Hyunjin dislikes them all, so Felix is surprised to see Jeongin, who he thought was nice from the few conversations they’ve had, there too. “Jeongin seems the nicest of them all—”

“Hey guys! You came!” Chan startles the life out of Hyunjin and Felix suppresses a laugh at how Hyunjin ever so clumsily almost spills his drink. “I see you have already helped yourself to a drink, nice. Hope you guys have fun!” 

Chan’s comment reminds Felix of why they came here. “Thanks, Chan! Let’s go dance first, guys!”

He downs his drink before he grabs his friends’ wrists and drags them onto the dance floor to dance. His friends still have to finish their drink before they join, but Felix already starts grooving to the music. 

Hyunjin and Jisung join soon, and Felix is happy to see that they’re able to let go a bit and have fun with the three of them, and later Minho joins them too. Felix notices that Hyunjin looks over to where Seungmin and his friends are sitting, and he sees that Seungmin and Jeongin are looking, but they all quickly look away, so Felix doesn’t worry about it, instead focusing on dancing and cheering everyone on the dance floor on. 

Felix can really spend hours like that, laughing with his friends, coming up with dance moves, seeing others flex their skills or not care and dance their hearts out, but eventually Chan comes to ask if they want to hang out and play games, and Felix can’t say no to that. 

They get another drink before they follow Chan to where Seungmin, Jeongin and his friends are also sitting. Felix quickly glances at Hyunjin, but the latter just seems to be ignoring Seungmin’s presence, so it should all be fine, and Changbin, Minho, and Chan are there too. 

They soon fall into conversation with the group, and even Hyunjin joins in and shares some of his philosophies which not everyone agrees with, but Jeongin at least seems to agree, and Seungmin stops his other friend, Seonyeong, from insulting Hyunjin too much, so Felix is glad. He doesn’t want to spend the whole night worrying that his friends will fight with others.

After that, they decide to play spin the bottle (Felix also voted for that), and they quickly go over the rules so that everyone is on the same page. They decide that you can either kiss someone on the lips for ten seconds, or you can pass on kissing but then you have to take a shot or a chug of your drink, or, because not everyone is drinking alcohol, Changbin comes with the idea that they can take a bite of a lemon every time they pass on someone (apparently Changbin has plenty of lemons in his house). 

Felix not only loves playing spin the bottle (can you blame that he likes affection and kissing people?), but he also loves watching it, seeing how people are either really awkward or how there’s some kind of tension between them that makes you wonder if there’s something going on or how some go all out with each other. 

When it’s Changbin’s turn, the bottle lands on Felix, and Felix gasps as he looks at Changbin, who looks back at him with a surprised but not necessarily reluctant expression, fortunately. He crawls over to his upperclassman when they both don’t pass, and he can’t suppress a grin, feeling extra giddy and confident when he’s tipsy. Changbin is very handsome, very kind, and very much Felix’s type. If he’s honest, he would even say that he has crushed on Changbin ever since they met. He can’t help it that Changbin is just exactly his type, okay? He’s buff, confident, muscular, kind and funny, considerate… You get the gist. 

The only reason why Felix hasn’t made any moves yet is because he wants to be sure of his feelings before he makes a move (it has happened before that someone was his type but their personality ruined it). He’s pretty sure that Changbin won’t turn out to be a shitty guy, but there’s no rush, and maybe Felix can use this kiss to gauge Changbin’s feelings about him, too. 

They smile at each other as Felix settles in front of Changbin, his eyes flicking down to Changbin’s lips, and Changbin brings up his hand to cup Felix's jaw. Felix's heart skips a beat at the gesture, and he doesn’t waste time before pressing his lips against Changbin’s. Changbin gladly kisses back, their lips moving more intently with every second that passes, and Felix almost forgets they're playing a game with how Changbin tilts his head and runs his thumb over Felix's jaw. Felix gasps softly and wants to deepen the kiss, but the ten seconds are already over, unfortunately. 

They part reluctantly, Changbin’s lidded eyes and flushed cheeks making Felix's stomach flip, and Felix bites his lip as a smile tugs at the corners of his mouth. Someone in the group whistles and Hyunjin and Jisung look at him with raised eyebrows as he crawls back as well, and Felix just grins at them. He still doesn't know for sure if this means that Changbin would date him or like him back, but Felix does know that Changbin enjoyed kissing him as much as Felix did too. 

That feeling settles as the game continues and Hyunjin has to kiss some girl and Jisung has to kiss Chan, their soccer team leader, which is awkward but also weirdly sweet, in Felix's opinion. It's his turn after Jisung's, and Felix is still giddy from his kiss with Changbin, so he is a little too excited when spinning the bottle, because it flies out of its course as it spins. 

The group and Felix's friends start chanting for Felix to play seven minutes in heaven with the person to who the bottle will point, and Felix blushes, hoping he'll end up with someone he likes. Changbin would be great, but Felix doesn't dare to hope that his luck is that big today—

Jeongin. 

The bottle stops at Jeongin, and that might be even better than Changbin, because Felix wouldn't only like to kiss him as well, but he'd love to talk to him properly and ask him about himself and his friends too, to see if he's really as bad as his friends seem to be. Felix finds it hard to believe looking at the few interactions he’s had with Jeongin, but he’s also been a first-hand witness of how Jeongin and Seungmin’s friends have treated Felix’s friends, making Jisung trip and making fun of him and Hyunjin, so he’ll definitely ask about it. If everything is all right, he might even get a kiss out of it, too.  

Jeongin’s friends try to protest to seven minutes in heaven, but it falls flat when Minho tells them that they don’t have to kiss, so there’s nothing to be uncomfortable about. 

“Changbinnie, do you have, like, a closet we can use?” he asks, swaying a little in tipsiness as he stands up. He feels warm in anticipation and from the alcohol. 

“Oh yeah, it's just over there. Uh– I'll lock you in, I guess.” Changbin motions for them to follow, so Felix walks over to Jeongin and offers his hand. Jeongin looks up at him with wide eyes before he accepts Felix’s hand, pressing his lips together as his cheeks redden. 

“Woo! Show him Felix!” Hyunjin calls after them as Changbin leads them to a closet, and Felix snorts when Jisung shouts some encouragements too. It only fires Felix up more, and the fact that Jeongin doesn’t let go of his hand even when they reach the closet bodes well. 

“Here it is. I’ll start a timer and come get you when the time’s up,” Changbin says with a sheepish smile. “Uhm— have fun, I guess.” 

Felix laughs and thanks Changbin with a hand on his shoulder before he pulls Jeongin inside the quite spacious closet. Still, Felix sits close to him, otherwise it wouldn’t be fun, and even when the only light illuminating them comes from the small gaps in the sliding door, he can tell that Jeongin is blushing. Felix finds it cute.

“So. I didn’t know you’re part of Seungmin’s friend group,” Felix comments, scooting closer from where he’s sitting opposite to him so that their feet touch, and he places a hand on Jeongin’s knee, to see how comfortable he is with Felix touching him. Jeongin just lets him do his thing, so Felix keeps his hand there and continues,  “You know Hyunjin, right? Seungmin is tutoring him, me and Jisung are Hyunjin’s friends.” 

Jeongin gulps and nods, rubbing his earlobe between his fingers shyly. “Yeah– I— that’s true. I’m friends with Seungmin and I know Hyunjin. I know you’re friends with him.”

“And do you hate athletes too, like your friends do?” Felix blurts, his filter basically gone now he’s tipsy, and Jeongin takes in a breath, his eyes widening a little. “Or do you hate Hyunjin?”

“What?— No– No I don’t—” Jeongin stammers, shaking his head. “I– I know it might seem like that, but I don’t hate athletes nor do I hate Hyunjin or you or Jisung. I… I don’t really know you guys, so… And I’m just really bad at sports, you know? I don’t know anything about it.” 

Felix breathes out a chuckle at Jeongin’s rambling and he squeezes the other’s leg. “Fair. But… you do realize your friends are kind of mean to mine, right?”

Jeongin presses his lips together and looks down with a guilt-ridden look as he takes his earlobe between his fingers again. Felix thinks it’s a cute habit. “I know— I’m sorry for what Seonyeong and Jaebok say to your friends and teammates, and I’m sorry that they tripped Jisung the other day. It’s— I…” 

He trails off and sighs defeatedly. “I don’t know. I– it’s not my place to reveal everything, I think— Can we talk about something else? Didn’t you want to like… kiss instead of talk?” Jeongin’s cheeks are colored a deep crimson as he asks it softly, and Felix softens, a smile growing on his lips. 

“I’d sure love to kiss, but I also wanted to get to know you a little more, you know? So that I know who I’m kissing,” he replies, trailing his hand up Jeongin’s leg a little, testing the waters. Jeongin tenses for a moment, but he soon relaxes again, and Felix continues, “So, tell me about yourself.”

Jeongin relaxes a little more when he starts talking about his hobbies and himself, and Felix joins him. Apparently Jeongin loves to draw, to sing (together with Seungmin), to play games, and he wants to become a kindergarten teacher. The more Jeongin talks, the more Felix is positively endeared by him, and it’s only amplified when Felix talks about his love for sports and playing games as well, and Jeongin listens intently, a certain sparkle in his eyes. 

Felix is almost entranced by the way Jeongin excitedly talks about a game they both like, and it’s probably his tipsy brain taking over, but he can’t help but stare at Jeongin’s lips. They look really kissable, his cupid bow curved in a very satisfying way, and the more he stares, the more he subconsciously leans in to kiss him, his hands still resting on Jeongin’s knees as he slowly but surely closes the gap between them. Jeongin gasps and pulls back when their lips brush lightly, which is when Felix’s mind clears up a little. 

“Ah– sorry, I thought you wanted to kiss, too,” Felix apologizes sheepishly, also pulling back and already feeling a bit disappointed, but Jeongin surprises him and places a hand on Felix’s, stopping him. 

“It’s okay. I— I was just surprised,” he mutters, his fingers twitching on top of Felix’s hand, as if he wants to hold it. Felix lets out a breath of relief before he smiles and leans in again, and Jeongin tilts his head a little in anticipation.

“Does that mean I can kiss you, Jeongin? It’s okay if you don’t want it,” Felix whispers, and Jeongin swallows thickly before nodding, his eyes flicking down to Felix’s lips.

“No— I mean, yes, you can kiss me.” 

Felix smiles at his answer before bringing up one hand to cup Jeongin’s warm cheek. He wants to take his time, but he’s very vaguely aware of their time limit, so he soon closes the gap between them again, pressing their lips together into a gentle kiss, and Jeongin melts into it. 

The kiss is nice, softer than his kiss with Changbin (for now), but Jeongin’s knees digging into Felix’s stomach as he leans over them are getting a little uncomfortable, so, when they part for breath, Felix gently pushes Jeongin’s legs down so that he can climb onto his lap and resume their kiss. 

Felix's hands tangle into Jeongin's hair while Jeongin's hands hover above Felix's hips hesitantly as they kiss more eagerly, and Felix is starting to feel warmer despite Jeongin's slightly clumsy way of kissing him back and his hesitance with where to put his hands. 

"You can hold my waist, Jeongin," Felix mutters against the other’s lips, smiling when Jeongin follows his instructions and holds him as he chases Felix’s lips, and Felix only smiles more despite trying to suppress it, not wanting to ruin the kiss, but Jeongin is just so endearing. 

Felix pulls back a bit to take a breath before he leans in again, one of his hands sliding down to hold Jeongin’s jaw, taking his chin between his fingers to coax his lips to part so Felix can deepen their kiss. First, he asks for access by running his tongue over Jeongin’s lower lip, and the younger’s breath hitches before he accepts, pulling Felix closer as they kiss more deeply. 

Heat spreads through Felix’s veins as their tongues swirl around each other, and he tangles his fingers back into Jeongin’s locks, trying to feel all of him, unable to get enough of kissing him. He loves Jeongin’s big hands on his waist, the way he’s doing his best to keep up with the kiss, and the way he seems to enjoy it just as much as Felix is. 

Their hot breaths mix every time they part for breath, but Felix is starting to feel too hot for his liking, and when he trails his hands down Jeongin’s neck, he seems to be the same, so, spurred on by his tipsiness as he licks into Jeongin’s mouth, he pops open one button of Jeongin’s shirt.

“Is that okay? I wanna feel you more,” Felix whispers, and Jeongin whimpers softly before nodding and hungrily kissing him again. He gasps softly when Felix’s hands roam over his shoulders and chest after popping open two more buttons, and Felix presses closer with an encouraging sigh when Jeongin’s fingers hesitantly dip under Felix’s shirt.

His fingers are relatively cold compared to Felix’s skin, but they still leave tingles in their wake, as if his fingertips are charged. Felix only wants more—

“Guys! Time is up— Woah!” Changbin opens the closet door without much warning — well, there was a little warning, but Felix didn’t want to stop kissing Jeongin, and Jeongin didn’t seem to want to stop either — and Jeongin almost falls over in shock when he pulls back. “Sorry I didn’t mean to interrupt like that!”

Felix helps Jeongin up with an embarrassed chuckle, his cheeks feeling as warm as Jeongin’s look — or maybe a little less, Jeongin looks like he’s overheating — and he thanks Changbin for coming to get them. Changbin looks a little shocked, still, but fortunately not too judgmental, so Felix is able to get over his embarrassment of being caught as they walk back, instead basking in the warmth he felt together with Jeongin. 

Jeongin stumbles a little as he scrambles to button up his shirt and make himself look a bit more presentable, but it seems like his friends and Jeongin’s friends have already spotted them, and Felix grins at his friends as he plops down again.

“Seven minutes was a little too short in my opinion,” Felix comments with a pleased chuckle. “It wasn’t enough time to both get all the tea and get all the action out of it, but I still got some of both.” 

Hyunjin snorts and Jisung pushes at Felix’s shoulder with a laugh. “Oh my gosh, you’re unbelievable, Felix!”

“Nah,” Felix shrugs, smiling bashfully. It’s not like he forced Jeongin to do anything, as far as Felix knows, Jeongin liked it as much as he did. “But what did I miss? Did Hyunjin get to kiss someone on his turn?”

Jisung tells him that Hyunjin kissed Seungmin — he didn’t pass apparently — and it was kind of intense, and Jisung kissed Minho right before Felix returned. Felix barely has time to process all the information before it’s Seungmin’s turn already and the bottle lands on him. 

Felix contemplates his options, but he eventually decides against accepting, “Is it okay if I pass this one? I’d like to bask in this feeling I have right now a bit longer.”

He takes a sip of his drink and Seungmin seems relieved as he drinks, too, like Felix expected when Jisung talked about Seungmin and Hyunjin’s kiss, and Felix wasn’t lying when he said he wanted to bask in the feeling he had in the closet with Jeongin for longer. 

He glances towards Jeongin, whose friends are talking to him — though it looks more like they’re lecturing him, almost — and the younger passes too when it’s his turn, but Felix wonders if it’s because of what his friends said or because of the same reason Felix passed. He kind of feels like Jeongin is trapped in his friend group, there is no other way it makes sense in Felix’s mind that Jeongin is so kind while Seonyeon and Jaebok are so judgmental and rude, and it makes his chest hurt a bit to see how Jeongin seems to be scooting away from Jaebok and Seonyeong, and towards Seungmin. 

Felix contemplates maybe passing again when it’s his turn again, but then the bottle lands on Changbin, and he can’t say no. His tipsy brain has no trouble jumping from worrying about Jeongin to being excited to kiss Changbin. “Spin the bottle is really the best game, huh?”

He didn’t mean to say that out loud, blame his tipsiness, but fortunately his friends and Changbin laugh, though Changbin also seems a bit surprised. He shouldn’t, he should know that he’s hot and that Felix would love to kiss him again. 

Felix takes Changbin’s cheeks between his hands and immediately starts kissing him deeply, spurred on by the knowledge that Changbin enjoyed kissing him the first time, too. Changbin is frozen for a second before he reciprocates, placing his hands on Felix’s hips, and someone in the group whistles again, making Felix smile. 

The ten seconds are over too soon, and maybe Felix pretends to not hear everyone yelling that the ten seconds are over, stealing a few seconds more of Changbin’s lips on his before he pulls back and gazes into Changbin’s eyes. His eyes are lidded again, but now there seems to be an extra kind of emotion glimmering in them. Felix is too tipsy to think much about it, but he is curious, and he’s also curious about Jeongin’s reaction, so when he crawls off Changbin’s lap, he locks eyes with the younger.

Jeongin’s already wide eyes widen even more and he quickly averts his gaze, avoiding Felix’s as he takes his earlobe between his fingers, and Felix’s heart sinks a little. He hopes Jeongin doesn’t think he used him to get information for Hyunjin or something, he’d never do that, he was just genuinely curious about Jeongin and he genuinely wanted to get to know him before kissing him (which was also nice because he finds Jeongin genuinely attractive). The younger may be less his type than Changbin is, but Felix can’t help but be intrigued by him and want to get to know him even more. 

When he sits down again, it’s Hyunjin’s turn, but he passes even though the bottle lands on Minho. Felix looks at his friend in bewilderment, silently asking why he’d pass on Minho, who is objectively really kind and handsome, but when he sees Hyunjin’s expression, he understands that he’s too up in his thoughts to enjoy the game anymore. 

Fortunately the game ends soon, and most of the group wants to keep playing, but Hyunjin seems to be done with it, announcing that he won’t join and that he has to use the bathroom. Felix and Jisung follow him, asking what’s wrong, but Hyunjin just shrugs and says that Seungmin is fucking with his head. 

Felix suggests to offer some of Jeongin’s perspective despite that he didn’t talk too much about Seungmin, thinking it wasn’t his place, and maybe he ends up blabbering about how cute and attractive he finds Jeongin too, but at least his friends laugh and seem to cheer up a bit. 

They dance a bit more after that, but, as Felix expected, Hyunjin and Jisung want to go home soon while Felix still wants to stay, so he hugs them goodbye and they tell him to have fun and not break too many hearts. Felix flushes, and he knows that his friends don’t mean it like that, but now that he’s sobering up a little, he can’t help but be a little worried that Changbin and Jeongin might be misunderstanding his actions— though, Felix himself is still too tipsy to think about whether he kissed them out of more than physical attraction tonight. 

He tells himself he doesn’t know them well enough yet to say for sure as he heads to the dance floor again, where he bumps into Changbin and Chan. Perfect.

“Hey, Changbinnie, Channie. Want to dance together?” he asks, and Chan smiles, but Changbin looks more hesitant. 

“Nah, I was going to play another game in a minute, but maybe Changbin wants to dance!” their soccer team leader bumps his shoulder against Changbin’s, and Changbin huffs before giving a brief nod. 

“Sure, if you want to dance, too,” he replies and gasps when Felix yells ‘yes’ a bit loudly as he grabs Changbin’s hand to pull him into the dance floor. 

Changbin has a lopsided and slightly endeared smile decorating his lips as they dance, but Felix can tell he’s still thinking about something. Before he can ask about it, though, Changbin speaks up.

“Isn’t there someone else you’d rather dance with?” he wonders, and Felix slows his movements, his chest squeezing at Changbin’s words.

“Why’d you say that? Do you mean Jeongin?” Felix responds, shuffling a little closer to Changbin, who exhales and shrugs. 

“Yeah, I mean— you looked pretty into him when I came to get you after seven minutes in heaven,” he says before giving a kind though slightly troubled smile. “That’s fine, of course. I just… I guess I just want to know what to expect.” 

Felix softens and runs his thumb over Changbin’s shoulder in hopes of easing him a little. “I understand. I— I just think you and Jeongin are both very attractive in your own way, and I kissed you guys because of that, too. There’s not one I prefer over the other or anything, I’m just having a good time at a party, but I’m sorry if I gave the wrong message. I didn’t mean to make anyone think there are any strings attached or something.”

Changbin chuckles and shakes his head. “Nah, you’re good, you’re allowed to have fun at a party. I guess I was just overthinking stuff, and I didn’t know if there was something going on between you and Jeongin.” 

Felix’s heart skips a beat at Changbin’s considerateness, and he squeezes his shoulder. “I get why it might have seemed like that, I… He has complicated friends, I guess, but what I mean is that I genuinely want to dance with you— I’d also love to dance with Jeongin, but that doesn’t take away from me enjoying dancing with you.” 

Changbin grins, his cheeks bunching up, and Felix wonders how he can be both so cute and so hot — just like Jeongin, Felix guesses he really does have a type. “Good. I’ll enjoy it too.” 

Felix mirrors Changbin’s happy grin before he starts dancing more energetically, and Changbin soon joins him, not afraid to throw in some silly yet cool moves that make Felix laugh delightedly and bust out his coolest moves too. Changbin cheers him on, and Felix has the best time, almost forgetting about Jeongin if it wasn’t for them bumping into each other when it gets particularly crowded around the dance floor. 

“Whoops! Sorry—” They simultaneously apologize, but Jaebok cuts them off.

“Can’t you watch where you’re going? You’re not the only one here. Gosh, you athletes can’t do anything right, huh?”

Felix bites the inside of his cheek as Jeongin hurries to intervene a little panickedly. “No, Jae– it was my fault.”

“I doubt it. That other athlete bumped into Seungmin, too. They’re probably hoping one of us spills our drink or something.” The guy doesn’t even listen to Jeongin, yet Jeongin shoots Felix an apologetic look, chewing on his lip as if he’s also feeling guilty for the way his friends are acting.

“It’s fine, Jeongin. I wasn’t really looking around either,” Felix assures, placing a hand on his shoulder. “By the way— do you want to join us on the dance floor? Changbinnie, you wouldn’t mind dancing with the three of us, right?”

He looks over his shoulder to gauge Changbin’s reaction, and he seems fine with the idea, so Felix turns to Jeongin with a hopeful look, but Jeongin looks conflicted.

“Pfft— It’s cute that you think Jeongin wants to dance with you—” Jaebok scoffs, and Changbin groans stepping closer so he’s standing next to Felix now.

“You can also let him answer for himself.”

Jaebok rolls his eyes with a scowl. “Why would he want to dance with you when this athlete guy was harassing Jeongin in that closet before, and not only that, it was after and before making out with you like some slut—” 

“Watch your fucking mouth,” Changbin warns sternly, taking everyone by surprise, but Felix is glad he stands up for him, feeling hurt by the comment despite knowing that he shouldn’t take it to heart. He doesn’t want them to fight, though. “You—” 

“It’s okay, Changbin, thank you. He’s not worth your energy,” Felix whispers with a hand on his shoulder before he turns to Jeongin, though he doesn’t have much hope for Jeongin accepting his offer anymore. “Do you want to dance with us, Jeongin?” 

Jeongin glances at a seething Jaebok before he looks down, pressing his lips together with a guilt-ridden and troubled expression, and it pains Felix to see. "I— I'm sorry." 

Jeongin looks up again with an almost desperate look in his eyes, as if pleading for them to understand, and before Felix can think of what he wants to say, Jaebok says 'I told you so' and drags Jeongin along further. 

Felix slumps as he turns back to Changbin, whose eyebrows are knitted together in a frown.

“Tch– what an asshole. I know rich people can be stuck up — I’ve lived in this world my whole life — but this guy is on another level,” he grumbles. “I’m sorry you had to hear that, Felix. I can’t believe Jeongin is friends with him.”

Felix presses his lips together and follows Changbin when he swings an arm around him and leads them off the dance floor. “It’s okay. I just feel for Jeongin because it seems like he doesn’t want to be friends with them, but I think they’ve been friends ever since they were young, so I understand that it’s hard to fight back.” 

Changbin sighs and squeezes Felix’s shoulder, and Felix leans into the touch, letting Changbin support a part of his weight. “You’re really kind, Felix. And, yeah, I guess we don’t know the full story. Maybe their parents are all friends and there’s some pressure there, I know how complicated it can get in this community.” 

Felix hums and turns to Changbin with a curious look. “And you? Have you ever suffered from that? Do you know what we could do to help?” 

Changbin softens and chuckles. “I’m lucky enough that my parents are friends with Minho’s parents and some others with kids who are older than I am. I… Hmm. I don’t think we can help that much if we don’t know his situation and if his friends are this… in the way, but I’m sure this at least made him think and reassess his situation.” 

Felix deflates and leans onto Changbin’s sturdy body fully now, getting tired. “You’re right. You’re the best, Changbinnie, thank you. I just hope Jeongin can get out of there.”

“I don’t know him too well, but me too.” Changbin pats his head supportively, and Felix hums. 

He’s starting to feel his fatigue now — he guesses having a lot of fun but also worrying wears you out —  and Changbin suggests walking him to his dorm, which fills Felix with warmth and appreciation. Changbin is really a sweetheart, and Felix is glad to have him, and it might be his tipsy brain, but he doesn’t think his crush on Changbin is getting any less like this. 

Nevertheless, Felix can’t help but think about Jeongin as well as Changbin walks him home. He knows he can’t do much about his situation, he knows that Hyunjin is trying with Seungmin and he’s having a hard time with it, but he still can’t help but wonder and worry about Jeongin. 

Fortunately, Changbin manages to calm him a little as he drops him off at his dorm room, and Felix thanks him again with a big hug, which Changbin warmly returns. 

Wow, Changbin’s hugs are really warm, he realizes. He doesn’t want to let go, and Changbin is kind enough to not pull away immediately, but eventually he does loosen his arms and give Felix one last supportive touch to his arm before wishing him good night. 

Felix thinks about Changbin’s warm hug and Jeongin and Changbin’s kisses for the rest of the night.

He doesn’t tell his friends about everything that happened at the party the next day. Not because he doesn’t trust his friends, but because he doesn’t want to worry them and he doesn’t want Hyunjin to have another frustration towards Seungmin and his friends on his mind on top of it, and it’s not like they can do much about the way things are anyway. 

Felix would rather forget what Jaebok said to him and focus on how Changbin helped him and how he enjoyed talking to Jeongin and kissing them both, but he does hope things will get better for Jeongin, because Felix thinks that the younger deserves that, and it might make things better for Hyunjin and Seungmin, too. 

“Okay, speak up, Jeongin. What’s wrong?” Seungmin startles him out of his dazed staring, and he jolts upright from his slumped position, surprised that Seungmin wasn’t too caught up in studying to notice his mood, but he should’ve known better. Seungmin always notices when he’s feeling down. “You’ve been off all day. Are you still thinking about the party?” 

Jeongin hums in confirmation, but he imagines that Seungmin isn’t much better with how he apparently kissed Hyunjin while Jeongin was in the closet with Felix and how Hyunjin reacted when he bumped into Seungmin later. It reminds him of how Felix bumped into him even though it was different (while Hyunjin was mad that Seungmin was frozen by their friends’ judgment, Felix was more understanding, but that doesn’t mean that Jeongin doesn’t feel guilty). Seungmin didn’t see it when it happened, but he knows about it because Jaebok complained about it.

“Maybe. I just… I— I am confused, I guess. And frustrated. And— I don’t know.” Jeongin shrugs, not knowing how to put his feelings into words.

Seungmin huffs. “I know that feeling all too well. Is it about Felix? You share a class with him, right?”

Jeongin nods and fidgets with his earlobe, his stomach swirling with mixed emotions as he thinks back on the party. “Yeah… I— He’s really kind as far as I know, and— I don’t know. He wanted to dance, but Jaebok called him names and I didn’t even have the guts to tell Jaebok off or to say that I did want to dance with him and Changbin. I mean— Changbin cursed Jaebok out, but I feel like I should’ve done that. I just feel bad.”

Seungmin is quiet for a minute after Jeongin’s ramble, seemingly lost in deep thoughts judging from the frown on his face. Eventually, Seungmin sighs and pats Jeongin’s back in support.

“I know the feeling. I hope they’ll understand, I of course understand and I don’t blame you, but I can’t say the same for Felix and Changbin. Hyunjin clearly blamed me .” Seungmin is honest as always, and Jeongin appreciates it, he appreciates the support, too. “I guess we can’t keep excusing ourselves for being friends with them, but…” He lets out a sigh coming all the way from his toes. “It’s not easy. I don’t even know where to start. I wonder how Hyunjin does it.”

“Maybe you can ask him?— Or— I don’t mean to push all the effort onto you, but maybe it might help,” Jeongin says with a shrug, and Seungmin agrees softly, though he does look hesitant about it. “It’s okay if it doesn’t work. Then I guess we’ll have to do it together without help.”

“Yeah. We’ll see. I’m sure we can figure it out whatever happens.” Seungmin bumps his shoulder against Jeongin’s and Jeongin lets out a breath as he nods. “Are you still going to talk to Felix tomorrow, by the way? Or do you still want to vent?”

“I think I’ll try to apologize tomorrow, yes. Hopefully I’ll have the guts to do so.” Jeongin chuckles dryly. “But thank you for having my back, Min.”

Seungmin huffs and smiles as he looks at him. “You have mine too.”

Jeongin’s heart is going crazy in his chest as he walks to the class he shares with Felix, he’s so nervous he feels like throwing up, and at this moment he’s already jealous of Seungmin for being able to stand up for himself against most people. Jeongin struggles with it, not wanting to offend anyone even though he knows that he can’t keep everyone happy at the same time. He has also been used to getting what he wants in life with his parents being relatively open and kind (especially compared to Seungmin’s), so that doesn’t make things any easier for him.

He didn’t know his heart could beat even faster, but when he spots Felix entering the lecture room, his heart miraculously manages to crank up its pace. Felix glances his way and Jeongin quickly looks away out of habit. When he looks back, Felix has already taken a seat somewhere together with a few others and Jeongin internally curses at himself for not having grasped the opportunity to talk to him.

He stands there in doubt for a moment more before just taking a seat as well and getting ready for the lecture. Maybe he can still catch Felix after the lecture, but hopefully Jaebok and Seonyeong won’t be waiting for him to go to their next class.

The class distracts him a little from feeling like he will collapse from nerves, but at the end, the dreadful feeling returns and he can’t stop overthinking about what he’ll say, whether Felix even wants to talk to him or whether he thinks that Jeongin is just as bad as Jaebok and Seonyeong are because he’s too much of a coward to stand up against them.

Before he knows it, everyone is packing their stuff again and heading to their next class, and Jeongin’s heart drops when he notices that he had been spacing out. Damnit Jeongin! Get yourself together!

He looks over his shoulder to look for Felix, but he can’t find him. Shit. He stands up quickly, dropping his notes onto the floor, and he curses under his breath as he scrambles to pick up his stuff and shove it into his bag before he speeds out of the lecture room, almost tripping over his feet two times.

“Felix!” His voice cracks as he calls out for him, but his stomach drops when he spots Seonyeong walking over to him — at least it isn’t Jaebok, but he will probably follow soon — and Jeongin goes into panic mode. Felix turns towards him with a curious look, but Jeongin is frozen on his spot for a moment before he forces himself to approach Felix, trying to be courageous for once. “I— I— uh— Can we talk?”

Felix’s eyes widen and Jeongin suddenly notices the fact that he has freckles. He saw before, but he never processed how many Felix has, and how pretty he is— “I have another class soon, but if it’s quick, we can talk, yeah.”

Jeongin can’t really read Felix’s expression, but he doesn’t look too mad, so Jeongin tries to get his voice to work with him and produce sound. “Okay— Yeah— I’ll try to be quick, uhm, just— I wanted to apologize again—”

“Jeongin! What’s going on? We have a class to go to,” Seonyeong interrupts him, bringing Jaebok and Seungmin with her. “Why are you talking to this guy?”

“Is he harassing you again?” Jaebok sneers and Jeongin flinches.

“No! I came to him because— I—” Jeongin’s throat closes up. He cannot get himself to accuse Jaebok of anything or open up about having wanted to dance with Felix in front of his friends. He should but he can’t.

“Why? Is he playing you? Is he using you?” Seonyeong asks with a scrunch of her nose, and Jeongin shakes his head.

“No— I just— I needed to—” His breathing isn’t cooperating, and he tries to will himself to calm down, but he has never been good at getting his brain and body to cooperate, and Jaebok and Seonyeong’s stares do him more bad than Seungmin’s encouraging look does him good.

“Hey, it’s fine, Jeongin. Just go to class,” Felix tells him with a brief touch to his shoulder. Jeongin whips around to face Felix again and he wants to protest and apologize, but Felix only gives him a disappointed yet supportive smile before he walks away, leaving Jeongin with a stinging sensation in his chest.

“What was that about?” Seonyeong asks as Seungmin comes to walk next to Jeongin, subtly bumping their shoulders together in support.

“Nothing,” Jeongin just grumbles in response, dejectedly staring down at the floor. He guesses it’s easier said that done to stand up for yourself.

“Someone got out of bed with the wrong foot,” Jaebok comments with a low whistle. “That guy isn’t worth your time, Jeongin.”

“Shut up, Jaebok,” Jeongin blurts and his friend whips his head towards him with wide eyes.

“What did you say?—” he almost growls at Jeongin, but Seungmin steps in.

“Chill, okay? It’s a Monday morning so we’re all tired, and we have a class to go to.” Seungmin forces himself between Jaebok and Jeongin for the last part of the walk towards the next class, which Jeongin appreciates.

Still, he’s not in the best mood during the lecture and also not during the break and also not after class because he tries to find Felix but then Seungmin reminds him that they have soccer practice on Mondays, and Jeongin groans. He only has the class with Felix on Mondays and Fridays and he doesn’t know if he can approach him some other time without being bothered by his friends. Maybe he can ask Seungmin to cover for him, but he doubts that he can get away with anything without his friends asking about it (even if he’d say he has a couple of questions for a professor or anything). 

He also can’t really join Seungmin to the soccer game this weekend since still no one in the soccer team knows why Seungmin watches them in the first place and Jeongin doesn’t want to expose him or bring him any trouble. It’s difficult, but Jeongin doesn’t want to give up just like that, so every day he tries to find a free moment to look for Felix and talk to him, but it’s more difficult than he thought, and he’s less brave than he hoped. 

Right now, Seungmin has his tutoring session with Hyunjin and Jeongin told his friends he forgot his notebook in one of the classrooms and that they can go home already. Coincidentally, he really forgot his notebook so he didn’t even have to lie, but it does give him less time to look for Felix because he might have gone home already and Jeongin doesn’t want to make his driver wait for too long— 

Oof— Jeongin walks right into someone and drops his bag and notebook in shock— Geez, can I stop bumping into everyone? “Ack— Sorry! I wasn’t looking—” 

Jeongin stops and gasps when he sees that he bumped into Changbin of all people, and his stomach drops and his heart cranks up its pace in anxiousness. He was glad that Changbin told Jaebok off at the party, but he’s also afraid that Changbin will curse him out for not defending Felix in front of his friends. Maybe they even got together after the party or something and he’s extra protective of Felix, especially since he saw him and Felix make out in the closet—

“It’s okay, I wasn’t paying attention either,” Changbin chuckles sheepishly, actually looking apologetic as he helps Jeongin grab his stuff. Jeongin is pleasantly surprised by his kindness, and it makes him relax a little, smiling when Changbin hands him his notebook.

“Thank you— uhm, do you perhaps know if Felix has already gone back to his dorm?” he asks hesitantly, and Changbin’s eyebrows shoot up before his expression smoothes again. 

“I assume he did. I think he already finished classes an hour ago? But I’m not sure, I don’t know his schedule too well,” Changbin replies with a shrug, and Jeongin is a bit surprised to hear that. He thought they were really close. “Why?”

Jeongin looks down and fidgets with the ring around his finger, blushing a little. “I just wanted to talk to him— apologize. I wanted to apologize, but I can’t seem to find him nor the time to talk.”

“You still want to apologize for what happened at the party?” Changbin wonders, and Jeongin has no idea if he’s surprised that Jeongin hasn’t done it yet or if he’s surprised that he wants to do it at all. Probably the former. 

“Y–Yes. Because what Jaebok said to him was way out of line and I don’t agree with him at all and uhm– I…” Jeongin trails off, unsure if he should tell Changbin he wanted to dance with them after all. He doesn’t know if Changbin will understand. Maybe he will, because he grew up in a similar environment as Jeongin did, but maybe he won’t, because he seems to be way braver when it comes to standing up for himself. “I’m trying to learn how to stand up for myself and others.”

Changbin softens and pats Jeongin’s shoulder. “I’m sure Felix will appreciate the apology, even if he might tell you that it’s not necessary.”

Jeongin hums in confusion and tilts his head, and Changbin huffs out a chuckle.

“He probably already forgave you for what happened at the party, but I think it’s good to still apologize. And I think it’s good that you’re trying to learn how to stand up for yourself and others,” Changbin explains, and Jeongin’s eyes widen. Really? Felix already forgave me? “If there is anything I can do to help, you can ask me, though you do have to talk to Felix yourself, of course.”

Jeongin’s eyes widen even more, not able to believe that Changbin is offering his help. “Of course! Uhm— Thank you, Changbin. I… I am still figuring things out, but I appreciate the offer.”

“Any time. Good luck.” Changbin clasps a hand on his shoulder before leaving and Jeongin lets out a breath of relief. Changbin is really nice, and apparently Felix is even nicer than he thought he was — at least, according to Changbin, and Jeongin hopes that they can all become friends when he and Seungmin figure out how to deal with their situation.

For now, that still seems like a distant future, though. 

Jeongin manages to catch Felix on Friday before their shared class begins, and, as Changbin predicted, he’s really kind and forgiving about everything (and maybe Jeongin swoons a little at his bright smile as Jeongin tells him that he did want to dance with him and that he will try to be brave enough next time). Seungmin also ended up asking Hyunjin for help at their tutoring session, which is nice and gives Jeongin a little confidence in that they can break their friendship with Seonyeong and Jaebok.

Unfortunately, though, it is not as easy as they thought. It’s exhausting to constantly fight with their friends, and he and Seungmin do support each other, but they’re also tired and prickly all the time, so they end up arguing sometimes, too. Jeongin has the luck that his parents are kind and he can tell them everything unlike Seungmin, so Jeongin does his best to apologize every time he snaps at his friend, and Seungmin is understanding, fortunately. Jeongin is really happy that he has Seungmin by his side at least, otherwise he really doesn’t know if he’d be able to do any of this.

“Jeongin, you have to agree that Seungmin is acting weird, right?” Seonyeong confronts Jeongin during the break, in front of Jaebok and Seungmin, who sighs deeply.

“ Jeongin has been acting just as weird, defending Seungmin and all,” Jaebok points out. “Seriously, what’s up with you two? Like, Seungmin is being tainted by that soccer guy, but you, Jeongin? I definitely expected better from you.”

Jeongin flinches at the harsh words, his stomach swirling as he hates to have to meet others’ expectations, but he tries his best to be courageous and steadfast. “I don’t think Seungmin has been acting weird, and me neither. We’re just finally speaking our minds more.”

“Speaking your minds? Sure. Why now, though? I’m sure it’s that Hwang guy getting to your head.” Seonyeong pulls a disgusted face. “But what baffles me is that he’s even getting to Jeongin’s head via Seungmin? Are you really that gullible, Jeongin?”

Jaebok sighs, shaking his head. “I bet Jeongin’s like this because of that slut. You know, that friend of Hwang, the one who was sticking his tongue in everyone’s mouth at the party—”

“Jaebok!” Jeongin interrupts exasperatedly. “Don’t call him that when you don’t even know him!”

The guy has the audacity to scoff at Jeongin, not even blinking an eye. “And you do know him? The fact that he harassed you and sucked face with that other rude guy says enough about him, no?”

“It doesn’t! We were playing spin the bottle!” Jeongin’s voice cracks as he gets worked up, his heart pounding in his ears. “And he didn’t harass me— how many times do I have to tell you before you finally listen?!”

Seonyeong harshly grabs onto Jeongin’s arm and looks at him sternly. “Calm down— That’s no way to talk to your friend.”

“Let go of me—” Jeongin irritatedly shakes his arm loose. He’s definitely feeling more angry than scared to stand up for himself right now. “You’re not my friend if you can’t even listen to me! Felix and Changbin are way nicer than you are– and they don’t deserve your vile comments.”

Jaebok gasps offendedly and his expression twists into an angry scowl. “Take that back you ungrateful punk! We have been there for you for years and these guys are only using you for their own pleasure and entertainment until they’re bored of your sorry ass! Everyone will look down on you if you go on like this— Do you really want to give up what you have now only to be pitied and used and left behind eventually?”

Jeongin swallows away a lump of frustration that’s forming in his throat and blinks away the wetness in his eyes, his mind racing and clouded with anger. “They would never do that! They —”

“And you know that for sure? Are you that confident in your people skills if it took you this long before you finally start speaking your mind? Are you really that sure of your own independency when you’ve been leaning on and leeching off your friends for years?!” Jaebok spits out, and his words burn Jeongin as if they’re acid. “We’re basically your only shot at ever achieving anything in your life—”

“Jaebok shut up!” Seungmin cuts in as he slams his hand on the table. “Unlike you, we don’t care if our friends can help us climb any social or other hierarchical ladders. So no, you are not there for him if you’re just insulting him—”

“I’m only being honest! He’ll never get over his cowardice if you keep defending him, letting him live in some fairytale, and push him in the wrong direction!” Jaebok sneers with just as much force as Seungmin directed at him, and at every shouted word, Jeongin tenses up even more, his shoulders reaching his ears as his heart pounds in his ears. “Friends are supposed to help each other in every aspect! You two started with the insults under the name of standing up for yourself and then we’re just supposed to take it? Fuck off!”

Seungmin scoffs, seeming way calmer than Jeongin feels. “Do you really not see that you have been insulting others around you left and right?—”

“Seungmin! What has gotten into you? Are you really defending Jeongin while he was attacking Jaebok?!” Seonyeong exclaims exasperatedly before she turns to Jeongin, who shrinks under her gaze. “Jeongin? Don’t think you can just leave it up to Seungmin to defend you and do all the dirty work while you sit around on your useless ass! Fucking apologize!”

Jeongin whimpers and his heart is slamming against his ribcage, his mind racing miles a minute with incoherent thoughts, and his throat feels constricted no matter how hard he tries to say something, anything.

“See? He’s a fucking coward!—”

“Enough! We already feel like shit, okay?” Seungmin cuts in almost desperately as Jeongin flinches and averts his gaze, trying to blink away the tears that are rapidly welling up. “At this point we’re talking past each other and getting nowhere, so let's just go to class and stop yelling at each other in the cafeteria.”

It’s awfully silent after that, and Jeongin doesn’t want to look at Jaebok or Seonyeong, but he imagines that they’re seething as they clean up their lunch and get ready for the next class. Jeongin shoves his stuff into his bag too and stands up without a word, simply swinging his bag over his shoulder and walking away before he bursts into tears right then and there.

He presses his lips together to try to stop the tears, tensing when he hears footsteps behind him, and he prays that it’s only Seungmin.

“Innie! Wait, are you okay?” Seungmin’s voice indeed sounds, and Jeongin lets out a shaky breath of relief. “Wait— Stupid question. Will you be okay? Is there anything I can do?”

Jeongin chuckles dryly, shaking his head as a stray tear falls down his cheek which he wipes away quickly. “No, it’s fine— Thank you for standing up for me— I— I’m sorry for letting you do all the work—”

“Hush— You were upset for a good reason, Jeongin. I wouldn’t have defended you if I didn’t want to. Don’t listen to Jaebok and Seonyeong,” Seungmin tells him with a shaky yet urgent voice before pulling him in for a brief hug. They almost never hug, Seungmin just not being one to do so often and Jeongin being too ticklish and not always enjoying hugs, but right now it’s nice. It’s really nice.

“Thank you— Min. I’ll be okay. You can go to class—” Jeongin sniffles, knowing that Seungmin has class in a different building now so he still needs to walk for a bit. Seungmin squeezes him in the hug before he lets go and whispers some encouraging words and reluctantly heads towards his own class.

Jeongin said he’d be okay, but as he walks towards his lecture, he still feels shaky and empty and insecure and frustrated and hurt, and no matter how many times he blinks his tears away and tries to even out his breathing, he doesn’t calm down. He’s early for his class, thankfully, so he lets himself weep softly, even though he feels like a fool, standing in front of the lecture hall while he’s crying, but he hopes he can let it all out before the lecture starts.

A few students already walk past him, but fortunately they don’t say anything if they even spot Jeongin standing there with his face in his hands and his shocking shoulders. Maybe he should lock himself in a bathroom stall and properly cry, but on the other hand he still hopes that he can calm down soon, however much he feels like he can cry for another hour with all the pent-up frustration and hurt he has built up these past weeks as he and Seungmin try to break free from the prison of their friend group and this rich stuck up community.

“Ahaha! Changbin you really—” Felix’s laughter sounds and Jeongin freezes, hoping that they don’t see him. “Hey, Jeongin! Are you coming—” He stops himself mid-sentence and Jeongin holds his breath, trying to make himself small as he wishes the ground would swallow him. “Is everything okay?”

“Yeah— Yeah I’m fine—” Jeongin tries to say, but his voice breaks and the floodgates open, tears flowing out uncontrollably as he sags down on the floor. He feels mortified for breaking down like this, but he can't stop his heavy sobbing even when Felix hesitantly hugs his back. "I–I'm sorry—" 

"Hey, it's okay. Let's go somewhere quieter to calm down, okay?" Felix suggests softly, his serenity a stark contrast to Jeongin gasping for air as he cries and blubbers into his hands. 

"But— But class—" Jeongin hiccups, and Felix squeezes him in his arms before he tries to pull him up together with Changbin. 

"Class can wait, and Changbinnie doesn't have any class now anyway," Felix says as he and Changbin gently lead Jeongin, who can barely breathe, can barely see anything through his tears and can barely walk on his shaky legs, towards a quiet spot somewhere. Changbin softly asks if Felix wants him to handle it so that he can go to class, but Felix declines. "I'll ask someone for their notes later. It'll be fine." 

They sit down somewhere outside, both Changbin and Felix caressing Jeongin’s arms as he sits between them and cries all his tears, hiccuping, whining, and blubbering as he hides his face. Changbin and Felix are patient with him, gently rubbing his back and arms, so Jeongin slowly manages to calm down with help from them, even if they stay silent. And even though Jeongin is embarrassed for crying for so long, he appreciates it a lot to not be alone right now. 

When he feels like his breathing is even enough to finally talk properly, he speaks up, feeling the need to say something at least, even though he's not sure what. 

"I'm sorry—" he hiccups. "I mean— thank you for helping me, but— I don't— want to keep you occupied." 

"It's okay. I wouldn't do this if I wasn't fine missing the lecture," Felix assures as he lightly massages Jeongin's shoulder. 

"Same here. I told you I'd help if you wanted, right?" Changbin grins and Jeongin lets out a watery chuckle as Changbin rubs his back comfortingly. "Do you want to talk about it? About why you're so upset?" 

Jeongin shrugs, still sniffling softly, and he wipes at his cheeks, feeling a little flustered by the attention. He isn't used to it at all, mostly staying in the background in his friend group, and Seungmin is not one to show that he cares in the way Felix and Changbin are doing now, especially not when he doesn't know someone well. 

"I… It's just— my friends— or, I guess they're not really my friends— it's complicated," Jeongin stammers, his breathing still a bit uneven. "I've been used to the same thing my whole life, and I want things to be different, but I— it's hard, and I wish I could just skip to where it gets better." 

Changbin hums in compassion and Felix softens, too.

"I heard from Hyunjin that you and Seungmin were planning to stand up against your friends. I can't imagine how difficult that must be when you have been friends for so long," Felix says softly, and Jeongin nods, the gentle press of his fingers into Jeongin's tense muscles helps him relax. "I'm glad that Seungmin is at least there for you, but I hope that you know that we are there for you, too." 

Jeongin looks up with wide eyes, seeing Felix and Changbin’s serious and kind expressions. "Really? Even if— Even if I've not been the kindest or— or you don't know me that well?" 

"We know you well enough to see that you try to be kind and that you try to do what's right," Changbin says, and Jeongin takes in a breath at the sweet words. "Or at least— you and Felix both told me that, so I believe it." 

Jeongin laughs softly as Felix agrees, but he can't help but get emotional again, though now his insecurities get mixed with feelings of gratitude, and Felix softens when Jeongin sniffles with a sheepish smile. "Thank you, Felix, Changbin." 

"Can I hug you, Jeonginnie?" Felix asks, a pretty glimmer in his eyes, and Jeongin has rarely wanted to accept a hug more than now, so he nods and lets Felix take him into his arms. Jeongin exhales and finally relaxes fully, leaning his head on Felix’s shoulder as Felix rubs his back, and his sniffles slowly die out. 

It’s a really nice hug, and Jeongin kind of doesn’t want to let go even though he's not crying anymore. He wants to stay in this warm envelope of Felix’s arms and feel safe and supported just as he feels with Seungmin but in a different way. Felix seems to notice what Jeongin wants and indulges him by holding him for longer, but eventually he does pull back and caresses the back of Jeongin’s head with a soft smile. 

"Thank you, that helped a little," Jeongin murmurs, a smile tugging at the corner of his lips. 

"I'm glad," Felix whispers. "You know, Changbinnie also gives really good hugs. They're really warm, so…" 

Felix looks between them, and Jeongin blushes while Changbin looks a bit surprised, too. 

"Well, if you want, of course you can get a hug from me, too," Changbin offers with a gentle smile, opening his arms from where he sits on Jeongin's other side.

Jeongin feels a little embarrassed and shy to accept it, but when he turns to Changbin with a small nod and the latter pulls him closer into the warmth and safety of his arms, Jeongin immediately melts. Felix was definitely right, it's a really warm and comfortable hug, and Jeongin feels like he can leave behind some of his worries there, in Changbin’s arms, as he hides his face on Changbin’s shoulder for a moment. 

If leaving his old friends means that he has Changbin and Felix to fall back on together with Seungmin, then everything might turn out to be okay, he thinks, especially if they comfort him like they've done today. Jeongin hopes that he isn't only a charity project for them, though, and he hopes that he can do something back for them once he isn’t in the middle of an overhaul of his life. He doesn’t know them too well still, but Jeongin really wants to become friends with them, having gotten a taste of how warm and kind Felix and Changbin are.

They stay together for a bit more, both Felix and Jeongin not really wanting to go back to class despite their classmates being pretty okay, and they talk a bit about some more positive things, like that Felix and his team are doing well in the soccer competition or that Changbin found a new workout routine he likes. 

Jeongin chuckles and tells them he only sometimes works out so he doesn’t sit on his ass all the time, but that he wouldn’t mind doing nothing all day, and he’s happy to see Changbin and Felix laugh at his half-joke too. It helps distract him.

Jeongin feels a lot better at the end of the day, and he even seems to be able to cheer Seungmin up a little by talking about what happened. Seungmin is relieved that Felix and Changbin seem to be so nice and helped Jeongin when he was sad, but Jeongin can tell that he’s still worried both about Hyunjin and about Seonyeong, Jaebok, and his parents. Jeongin assures him they’ll get through it together, and he knows that it won’t be easy or a nice and smooth process, but they have each other, and Seungmin seems to believe him, offering him a small smile. 

“You’re right. We’ll get through this together. And maybe we’ll even have some extra support.” 

Changbin doesn’t experience all the drama firsthand or even gets to hear much of it, but one day he’s watching a soccer practice with Minho after class and Chan is calling Hyunjin because he’s not present, after which he asks if anyone knows about any pictures taken of Seungmin watching a game. Changbin only knows a little about Hyunjin and Seungmin’s drama, but he knows that they’re slowly seeming to become closer and, knowing all about what it’s like to live in a rich community, he knows that there are probably negative rumors spreading around about Seungmin watching a soccer game.

Changbin personally doesn’t give a shit what anyone thinks about him watching soccer games and he knows Minho doesn’t either, but from Jeongin he knows that he and Seungmin are still trying to break free from worrying about what others think of them, and their circles are definitely more judgmental than Changbin’s and Minho’s. Changbin hopes that Seungmin will be okay, and he hopes that Jeongin, who will probably be there for Seungmin, won’t suffer too much either, but he doesn’t think that he can do much to help, unfortunately. 

So, he just watches the soccer practice and carries on with his life. He hears via Felix that one of Seungmin and Jeongin’s (ex-)friends took the pictures and that Seungmin and Jeongin definitively ended their friendship with Seonyeong and Jaebok, which makes Changbin feel relieved, but he isn’t sure what to do with it. 

Seungmin and Jeongin join Hyunjin, Felix, and Jisung during lunch while Changbin sits with Chan and Minho and some other friends. He sees Felix and Jeongin sometimes before the younger two’s shared class and of course he sees Felix at the soccer games and practices, but that’s all, and Changbin doesn’t know if he should try to see them more often. He wants to, but he isn’t sure if he should —

“Bin. You’re staring into space as if you’re looking at a kitten you’d like to adopt but you don’t have enough money,” Minho comments, pulling Changbin out of his daze with a little jolt. He didn’t even notice he was that distracted, but then again, it happens more often, so he’s surprised that Minho even comments on it.

“Two kittens, to be exact,” Chan corrects with a low chuckle before he nods his head to where Changbin was staring. “He’s looking at Jeongin and Felix’s table.” 

“Oh? Is there tea to spill? Are you still in your head about what happened at that party?” Minho asks, and Changbin flushes, shaking his head. He also didn’t know he’d been this obvious about his inner turmoil, but then again, Chan and Minho just know him very well. 

“No— That’s not it. Jeongin has ended his friendship with those two assholes and Felix told me he genuinely finds me attractive but—” Changbin cuts himself off with a deep sigh. He said he’s over what happened at the party, and he is, mostly, but it does still add to his overthinking. “I don’t know. I don’t know what I want.” 

“Why not?” Chan bumps his shoulder against Changbin’s, and Minho adds,

“Yeah, you always know so well what you want!” 

Changbin chuckles at his friends before he shrugs, his smile disappearing again. “I just don’t want to be in the way of anything.” 

“Are Jeongin and Felix a thing, then?” Minho asks with a tilt of his head. 

“Not that I know of, but… I can tell that they really like each other,” Changbin mutters, and he feels Chan’s hand creep up his shoulder to massage it.

“But Felix said he finds you attractive too, right? You can still shoot your shot even if there’s something blooming between Jeongin and Felix, too,” Chan says, and Changbin presses his lips together reluctantly. “If they don’t feel that way about you, then they can just reject your advances. It’s not selfish to act on your feelings, especially if you’re not sure if Felix and Jeongin both want to get together.” 

“Wait— Is this about Changbin wanting to shoot his shot with Felix or with both of them?” Minho interjects before Changbin can react. “Sorry– I’m not completely in the loop on this.”

“Me neither, I just kept my comment general in case it was both of them.” Chan shrugs before they both look at Changbin curiously, waiting for an answer. 

“I— That’s the thing. I’m not sure,” Changbin sighs, running a hand through his hair, feeling a bit awkward under his friends’ intense attention. He knows that they mean well, though, and he knows that he needs to be confronted in order to face his feelings. “I really like Felix, and he’s totally my type, too, and Jeongin… he’s nice, cute, too, but yeah— I don’t know him that well yet, and… I guess I’m overthinking everything.” 

“Just take Chan’s advice and see where you’ll go with that,” Minho suggests with a pat to Changbin’s shoulder. It’s simple advice and a simple gesture, but that’s what Changbin needs— he doesn’t need to overcomplicate things. “Don’t feel guilty, just see what feels right.” 

“I’ll try.” Changbin offers his friends a small smile, and while he’s still a bit unsure about everything, his friends’ words do help a bit, and he can always just be friends with Jeongin and Felix if anything. He only hopes that he won’t be too heartbroken or jealous. 

“Jeongin! You’re here too!” Felix lights up when Seungmin and Jeongin show up to watch a soccer practice, and Felix and Hyunjin greet the two, Felix looking very excited while Hyunjin simply looks happily surprised. Changbin’s chest tightens a little in jealousy, but he focuses on finding it sweet that Felix is so happy to see Jeongin and how Jeongin smiles bashfully at the attention. 

“I know you’re not really a sports fan, but if you’re bored you can always just chat with Changbinnie or Seungmin or anyone who wants,” Felix tells the younger before he grins at Changbin, and Changbin smiles sheepishly, a bit unsure why Felix is looking at him so intently, but maybe it’s just a coincidence. 

Either way, Changbin sits between Jeongin and Minho, and Minho nudges him, quirking up his eyebrow. Changbin presses his lips together, pretending not to know what Minho means, but when Minho looks more pointedly, he guesses that he does actually want to talk to Jeongin.

“I heard that you finally ended your friendship with Jaebok and Seonyeong a bit ago. Congrats,” Changbin says, leaning back on his hands as he glances toward Jeongin, who looks back with slightly raised eyebrows before he softens.

“Thanks. It was tough but it was definitely worth it, even if we’re still adjusting, Seungmin especially,” Jeongin replies with a small smile. “I’m really thankful that you all are so welcoming and supportive, it makes me hopeful that everything will work out eventually.” 

Changbin smiles and massages Jeongin’s shoulder briefly. “Of course. I’m glad everything is working out for you. Felix and his friends are really kind, so I’m happy you can be with them.” 

Jeongin’s smile turns fond as he nods, and it tugs a little at Changbin’s heart. “I am. I… I’m not really used to this kind of friend dynamic, Seungmin is neither, but I already think they’re really cool, yeah.” 

Changbin softens, focusing on being happy for Jeongin rather than being jealous. He mutters something under his breath about being glad again before he changes the subject to the soccer practice and tells Jeongin about how a practice usually looks and what the fun is of watching.

Jeongin easily laughs at Changbin’s exaggerated explanation of how soccer works, who does what, and what they need to work on in Changbin’s very professional opinion. Jeongin looks at him like he thinks Changbin is a little crazy, but it’s okay because Jeongin’s cute and bright laugh makes up for it, and Seungmin even shoots them a curious look before softening and smiling, so Changbin thinks everything is all good. 

Everything is all good in principle, but the few practices and games where Jeongin and Seungmin join Changbin and Minho in watching the soccer team don’t help Changbin get any closer to making a decision about what he wants to do regarding his confusing feelings towards Felix and Jeongin. 

Jeongin is really sweet and cute when he laughs and he’s actually a little cheeky too, Changbin learns as he interacts with Jeongin and sees him interact with Felix and his friends, and it’s honestly bad for Changbin’s heart, because every time he sees the way Jeongin and Felix smile at each other, giggle together, or light up as soon as they see each other, Changbin’s heart clenches, yearning for them to look the same way at him.

When the soccer finale rolls around, Changbin is almost sure he is slowly falling for Jeongin, too (he has already accepted that he is falling for Felix). Jeongin’s cute laugh where his eyes scrunch up until they almost disappear, his cheeky jokes and fond eye-rolls, his bashful smiles and sheepish grin whenever he’s shy or embarrassed, his curiosity and surprised reactions when he learns something new… Anytime Changbin discovers something more about Jeongin, he falls more, and the same goes for Felix.

He had hoped that maybe his feelings for the freckled boy would stay at simple physical attraction, but he’s such a sunshine, so kind and positive, funny, also a little cheeky but in a different way than Jeongin, and one of his worst (best) traits: he’s flirty. Changbin could live with simply the feeling that he wants to protect Felix and thinking Felix is somewhat (read: very) attractive, but whenever Felix flirts with either him or Jeongin, Changbin positively loses his mind. All those flirtations make it feel so possible and in reach that they could be a thing together or even with the three of them, but Changbin still doesn’t want to be in the way of Felix and Jeongin or make them feel guilty for their feelings for each other.

Sure, Changbin doesn’t know if they actually have feelings for each other, but whatever it is, he doesn’t want to disturb the delicate, sweet thing that is blooming between Felix and Jeongin, and no matter how many times Minho and Chan tell him he shouldn’t worry too much, Changbin can’t help himself.

Usually Changbin prides himself in his confidence and steadfastness, but Felix and Jeongin just make him feel so much, he wants to protect and coddle them, and that’s why he doesn’t want to hurt them. It’s not like he doesn’t think that they can’t like him, but every time he wants to make a move he thinks of how the other of the two might feel sad or jealous, and he can’t handle that.

At the soccer finale, Changbin manages to distract himself by focusing on the game and cheering on the team together with Minho, Seungmin, and Jeongin, though Jeongin also laughs at how loudly Changbin yells whenever any of their friends scores or passes the ball nicely, which is unfairly cute. 

When Chan scores the last, winning point, the whole crowd erupts in cheers, and Changbin usually throws himself onto Minho for a hug but right now Jeongin is closest to him, so he all but throws himself onto Jeongin in a hug, lifting the younger up as they celebrate the win of the soccer team. Jeongin laughs delightedly in surprise as he hugs him back and gives Changbin a bright smile which makes his heart soar. 

As soon as the game officially ends and the teams have thanked each other for playing, Seungmin is the first one to sprint down to congratulate the team (mostly Hyunjin), and Changbin, Jeongin, and Minho soon follow, hugging their friends and congratulating them on the win. Felix spots Jeongin first and hugs him tightly, laughing wholeheartedly when Jeongin compliments him on kicking the ball well. 

When Felix comes to Changbin next, he all but jumps into Changbin’s arms and Changbin spins him around, earning elated giggles from Felix and it’s just as lovely to hear as from Jeongin — Changbin’s heart is never going back to its normal rhythm like this. 

“Thank you for cheering so loudly, Changbinnie,” Felix chuckles when Changbin puts him down again, and Felix’s hand finds Changbin’s jaw for a brief moment. “It really fired me up! I think that goes for everyone.”

“Of course. You know me,” Changbin grins and Felix returns the smile tenfold, his hand sliding down to squeeze Changbin’s biceps as thanks before he and the other athletes head to the changing rooms to shower and get changed. How can someone be so… lovely?

They wait for them to be done, after which Chan invites everyone to his apartment to celebrate. Seungmin and Jeongin are a little surprised to be invited, but Changbin agrees with Hyunjin that they should know that they’re part of their friend group by now, even if everyone is still adjusting to the change.

In Chan’s apartment, they all cram themselves on all the chairs, beanbags, and sofas they can find, and Changbin finds a chair next to Jeongin, who put his chair next to the sofa Seungmin and Hyunjin are sitting on. Changbin looks around to find Felix, and he spots him carrying a few drinks for others, his small fingers barely able to hold onto two beer bottles at once, and it makes Changbin chuckle.

When a bottle almost slips out of Felix’s hands, Chan, Changbin, and Jeongin all stand up from their seat to help him. Jeongin is the fastest to make sure that Felix doesn’t drop anything, and Felix chuckles gratefully.

“Let me help you,” Jeongin says, taking a bottle from him and helping him distribute them to anyone who doesn’t have a drink yet.

“Thanks, Innie. You’d probably be able to do it alone with your big hands,” Felix laughs with a flirty smile, and Jeongin snickers bashfully.

Changbin’s stomach churns in jealousy, so he tries to focus on something else, looking over his shoulder as he contemplates getting a drink too, but then Jeongin hands him one with a gentle smile that tugs at his heart before Jeongin sits down next down again.

“Thanks,” Changbin mutters with a small smile, immediately taking a swig of his drink to try to drown his weird feelings, but apparently Felix and Jeongin weren’t planning on giving Changbin’s heart any rest, because Felix comes into his view, asking,

“Is this seat free?”

Changbin almost chokes on his beer as he looks at Felix to see if he’s serious, but when he sees Felix’s genuine expression and the fact that there are no seats left, Changbin realizes that he’s completely serious.

“Yeah— Yeah of course,” Changbin clears his throat and blushes as Felix sits on his lap, but nevertheless Changbin secures one arm around him for comfort. “Is it comfortable?”

“Yeah it is, actually!” Felix chuckles as he leans back and grabs Changbin’s arm to tighten his grip around him. “Is it okay for you too?”

“Yeah, I can still drink and see almost everyone.”

“Good.” They both relax and Changbin feels warm with Felix on his lap, a tiny bit of hope returning to him that at least Felix likes him a lot. He logically knew it already, but sometimes it’s easier for Changbin to believe that Felix only likes Jeongin, because that would make everything easier for him. Now, Changbin doesn’t have any excuse to not do anything about his own feelings because he has to deal with Felix on his lap.

When Jeongin looks at them too, Changbin hopes he isn’t jealous, but the slightly insecure glimmer in his eyes contrasting his soft smile doesn’t bode well. So, Changbin reaches out with his free hand to lightly caress Jeongin’s thigh and rest it there, at which Jeongin’s eyes widen a little, but the bashful smile that follows has Changbin’s heart simultaneously at peace and pounding faster.

That eases a bit when they all just talk with the group, but when the conversation topic becomes Hyunjin and Seungmin’s (past) beef, Felix turns around a little on Changbin’s lap to face both of them.

“On one hand it seems so long ago that there was tension between our friend groups, but on the other hand that party at Changbinnie’s feels like it was yesterday,” Felix comments, swinging one arm around Changbin’s shoulders as he sips on his drink, now sitting sideways on Changbin’s lap. “I’m glad we’re all friendly now, though, otherwise I might have bothered Innie until he’d dance with me.”

Jeongin barks out a laugh together with Changbin, but Changbin’s chest squeezes a bit at how Felix said ‘me’ and not ‘us’.

“You still haven’t danced together, though, right?” Changbin asks, and he intended it to be a little encouragement to Jeongin and Felix, but now he realizes that there’s also a possibility that they have already danced together and Changbin didn’t even know it. That thought kind of scares him, but seeing Jeongin blush and Felix smile bashfully probably means that they haven’t.

“No, but— well, we haven’t really had the chance yet,” Felix mutters, briefly glancing towards Changbin too. “I guess with the upcoming exams there won’t be any parties, but… Changbin is right. I think that Jeongin owes us a dance.” 

"Us?" Changbin repeats bewilderedly, and Felix turns himself to Changbin with a confused frown. 

"Yeah, we asked him to dance with both of us at the party, right?" Felix says as if it's the most obvious thing. "I mean, I know that I asked, but don't you want to dance with Jeongin too?" 

"Yes— no, I do, I just was a little confused about who we were talking about," Changbin clarifies, his cheeks burning with Felix's attention and his mind rapidly going between being glad that Felix is including him and fearing he's standing in the way again. "If Jeongin wants it too, of course. You two can just go together, too."

Felix's frown deepens, but before he can say anything, Jeongin finally speaks up. 

"I'd love to make up for how I acted at the party and dance with you both, but uhm… Shortly after the exams I'll be going on vacation with my family," he tells them, rubbing his nape sheepishly as he offers them an apologetic look. "I don’t know if you guys have any summer plans or when you guys wanted to do it…" 

"I'll go somewhere with my parents and sister too, but only the few weeks before the semester starts again," Changbin says, and Felix purses his lips in thought. 

"We'll see what we'll do, but I'm holding you two to it," Felix tells them with serious eyes and flushed cheeks from slight tipsiness. He looks at Changbin with extra urgency, and Changbin's heart skips a beat at it. It feels like Felix is trying to tell him that he's part of everything too, but Changbin needs some time to wrap his head around everything, meaning both his own feelings and Felix's probable ones. 

When Jeongin excuses himself to use the bathroom, Felix leans back into Changbin’s chest, and Changbin hugs him as Felix melts a little in his arms. 

"You know that I like you just as much as I like Jeonginnie, right?" he whispers, and Changbin coughs in surprise, heat creeping up his neck. "You're not an afterthought." 

Changbin huffs and hides his face on Felix’s shoulder a little. “I know, Lixie. I… You’re the sweetest, thank you.” 

Felix huffs and grabs Changbin’s hand to squeeze it as he lightly noses Changbin’s hair, aa warm gesture to calm Changbin’s heart. “I’m just saying. I—”

Felix stops himself when Jeongin returns, and Changbin removes his head from Felix’s shoulder quickly, but Jeongin probably saw them anyway. Indeed, Jeongin looks a little troubled even though he’s obviously trying to hide it, so Changbin gently lets his hand find Jeongin’s thigh again, massaging it in hopes of wordlessly assuring him a little. 

Felix also laughs a lot and hugs Jeongin and Changbin fondly whenever they make a joke or comment something funny, and it seems to ease both Changbin and Jeongin a bit, but, as the hangout slowly comes to an end and they all walk to the dorms to drop off Hyunjin, Jisung, and Felix, Changbin can sense a slight tension in the air. 

He watches the younger ones all hug each other goodbye before Felix individually hugs Jeongin and Changbin, too. Changbin is up first for a hug, and Changbin lets out a deep, relieved sigh as he embraces Felix tightly and Felix squeezes his biceps, making him chuckle. 

“Sorry, you know I can’t help myself,” Felix whispers with a cheeky smile, and Changbin fondly pats Felix’s cheek.

“And you know I like flexing my muscles, so you’re good,” Changbin replies with a flex, and Felix laughs delightedly, running his hand over the muscles for good measure. Changbin genuinely feels good whenever Felix so freely and unashamedly appreciates his muscles (or his personality), so he basks in the moment before Felix finally turns to Jeongin and hugs him lastly. The hug looks warm and loving, and Changbin manages to not feel too jealous for once.

“Text me when you’re back so we can find a date to dance together, yeah?” he says, briefly holding Jeongin’s hand. “And good luck with the last exams.”

“Will do. And you too,” Jeongin whispers back, a small smile adorning his lips, and the way he looks at Felix as the latter finally retreats to his dorm, eyes glimmering in longing, makes Changbin sure that Jeongin is harboring feelings for Felix, and the realization tugs at Changbin’s heart. 

Changbin sighs and shakes his head to get rid of the thoughts before he checks his phone to see when his driver is coming. The last text she sent was that she was on her way to pick Changbin’s parents up from work, which was a bit ago, so it’ll probably be a while. He doesn’t mind hanging around for a bit more, even if Chan is already back in his apartment and Minho has taken the bus back to his, too. 

“Do you need a ride, Innie?” Changbin hears Seungmin ask when his driver arrives, and Jeongin shakes his head. 

“Nah, mine should be there soon, too. He’s just dropping my parents off first,” he answers, and Seungmin nods before saying goodbye to his friend, leaving Jeongin and Changbin alone. 

Changbin internally chuckles at how similar their situation is, and they’ve talked about it a bit together already, about how their parents and family are relatively chill, how they both not really care about following the rules of their rich community but do care a lot about family, but sometimes Changbin forgets about it all and thinks that they’re both simply normal kids in college. 

Changbin’s phone buzzes and he grabs his phone to see a text from his mother, saying that his father felt a bit unwell so they’re getting him checked out at the hospital just to be sure. The hospital is quite a bit away, so Changbin will either have to wait for at least another half hour or go home himself. He doesn’t want to give their driver such a busy day, so he texts that he’ll figure out how to get home by himself and otherwise crash with Minho or Chan.

He sighs and runs a hand through his hair, not really looking forward to figuring this out after a busy day, but there’s not much else he can do. 

“Is everything okay?” Jeongin pulls Changbin out of his thoughts, and Changbin jolts a little, having forgotten that Jeongin is still waiting for his driver, too. “Sorry— I didn’t mean to startle you, but you looked troubled.” 

“Yeah– it’s just, my dad became a bit sick so our driver had to bring my parents to the hospital for a check-up last minute,” Changbin explains and Jeongin gasps softly. 

“Oh no, is he okay?” 

“Yes, he’s fine, fortunately— he’s just been having headaches lately and we thought they were just stress, but even if they are, it’s better to let it get checked out to be sure,” Changbin says, and Jeongin hums in agreement. 

“Do you want a ride home? I’m sure Brian won’t mind making a little detour,” Jeongin offers, and Changbin’s eyes widen. 

“Yeah? If that’s okay, that’d be amazing! But I can also ask Chan or Minho to let me crash there,” Changbin assures, but Jeongin waves him off. 

“I’m sure it’ll be fine— There he is already! I’ll quickly ask!” Jeongin runs off towards where a car is parked and half-climbs into it before he runs back with a smile. “He’s okay with it!” 

Changbin laughs and thanks Jeongin and the driver too as they get in the car. Brian tells him it’s all good, too, and after that, a comfortable silence falls, though— that slight tension Changbin felt earlier returns again, and when he looks at Jeongin, he catches him staring at Changbin with a light frown, too. 

“What’s on your mind, Jeongin?” Changbin asks softly, and Jeongin startles a little, flushing as he looks away. 

“Nothing, I just— Uhm…” Jeongin swallows and takes a breath as he fidgets with the rings around his fingers. “I was just wondering, uhm— is there something between you and Felix?” 

Changbin takes in a breath, though he isn’t necessarily too surprised to hear the question, because he has been meaning to ask Jeongin the same (he knows from Felix that they aren’t in a relationship, but there still might be feelings between them). “Ah— No, there’s not— Not really. Felix is single. We both are. Why?” 

Jeongin presses his lips together and rubs his earlobe between his fingers as he looks down at his lap, shrugging. “I was just wondering I guess— At the party he sat on your lap and all, and you two just looked… close, and comfortable.” 

Changbin softens, his heart doing a little swoop at how Jeongin thought he and Felix were together, but he wants to assure Jeongin, and he’s also curious about Jeongin’s feelings, so he puts his hand on Jeongin’s to get his attention and offers him a gentle smile.

“Do you like Felix, Jeongin?” 

Jeongin’s eyes widen and his blush deepens. “I— Am I really that obvious? Is it a problem?”

“Hmm? Why would it be? It’s not like you can help who you like,” Changbin tells him and it reminds him of what Chan and Minho told him . It’s always easier to give the advice than to follow it, it seems. “And I think Felix really likes you as well.” 

“Really?” Jeongin’s eyes glimmer with hope, and Changbin can’t help but get a little lost in them. “I– I guess you’re right that I can’t help my feelings, but… yeah, I just thought you two really like each other, too.” 

Changbin’s cheeks feel warm as he squeezes Jeongin’s hand in his own, lightly running his thumb over the back of it. “We do, but… as Felix once told me, that doesn’t mean we don’t really like you as well.” 

Changbin meant to say ‘he’ instead of ‘we’, but the point still stands, because Changbin really likes Jeongin as well. The corners of Jeongin’s lips twitch up and his fingers curl around Changbin’s as he nods, a soft pink flush coating Jeongin’s cheeks where his dimples appear.

“You’re right. I guess that it can all coexist.” 

Changbin can’t help but smile, warmth spreading through his veins when Jeongin smiles at him kindly. The feelings overwhelm him a little — the realization that he has fallen as hard for Jeongin as he has for Felix washing over him and making his heart go into overdrive. 

“Does that mean you like me a lot too, Jeonginnie?” Changbin teases as a gut reaction to try to distract from his overwhelming feelings, and Jeongin barks out a surprised laugh before letting go of Changbin’s hand to push at his shoulder. 

“If you can figure out how I feel for Felix, you can figure this out yourself, too,” Jeongin mutters half-smugly half-shyly, and it doesn’t help Changbin’s mind and heart from racing. 

“This is our first stop!” Brian announces before Changbin can even begin to process the possible implications of Jeongin’s words. “This is the right house, right?”

“Uh— yeah! It is,” Changbin belatedly answers, and Jeongin chuckles lowly. “Thanks a lot again for dropping me off. I really appreciate it!” 

“No problem,” Brian answers, and Changbin softly thanks Jeongin for offering, too, before he opens the car door.

“I’ll see you around, and good luck with your exams in advance,” Changbin tells Jeongin with a wave, and Jeongin smiles.

“You too, Changbinnie, and hopefully your dad will feel better soon. Bye bye.” 

Changbin can’t stop smiling as he walks the last bit home, and even when his sister greets him with the good news that their dad has nothing serious and he can just take simple meds to help it, she can tell that Changbin is grinning about something else, too. 

And maybe with the peace of mind that his dad is okay, Changbin spends the whole evening thinking about Jeongin and Felix instead of studying, but that is only for him to know.

Exams are stressful. The evening of the soccer finale he had a little hope that maybe he could still hang with his friends or squeeze in a hangout (slash date?) with Jeongin and Changbin, but unfortunately their free time either didn’t overlap or was spent recovering from exams and studying. 

Today is Felix’s last exam, coincidentally of the class he shares with Jeongin, and maybe it’s cheesy, but seeing Jeongin’s smile before the exam gives him some energy and motivation throughout, and overall his exams went well, so Felix is happy, even if the studying process was adjacent to a hellish experience. 

“Ah, I’m so glad exams are over now,” Felix sighs after their last exam, and he drapes himself over Jeongin as the latter chuckles.

“Big mood,” Jeongin groans, leaning on Felix in the hug, too, and they both stay embraced for a moment to recover from the busy exam period. 

“I’d love to hang for longer, Lixie, but I should probably text Brian so I can go home and pack,” Jeongin mutters, finally pulling out of the hug, and Felix slumps with a pout. “With all the exams I didn’t have time to pack yet, so… yeah, I’m not fully free yet.”

“And you’re leaving… tomorrow, right?” Felix asks, and Jeongin nods, so Felix dejectedly kicks the ground. “Darn. Don’t you have someone who can pack for you?” 

Jeongin laughs and shakes his head. “Nope. We’re not that rich, unfortunately, and if I pay any of my brothers to pack for me that will be disastrous.” 

Felix barks out a laugh, thinking that there is probably a story behind that statement, but he’ll have to ask about that another time, because Jeongin pulls out his phone to text his driver with a chuckle, and Felix wants to make the most of these last moments with Jeongin before he leaves. They both walk out to wait for Jeongin’s ride, and a comfortable yet charged silence falls over them. 

“You better not forget about your promise while you’re on vacation,” Felix mutters lightheartedly, and Jeongin chuckles lowly, bumping his shoulder against Felix’s.

“I won’t. A promise is a promise, and to be honest… I’m kind of looking forward to dancing with you and Changbin,” Jeongin replies softy, rubbing his earlobe between his fingers as he smiles. He looks a bit shy to admit it, but he still adds, “I already wanted to at the party, so we’ll just have to be patient and wait until I’m back…”

Jeongin trails off and briefly looks at Felix before looking into the distance, and Felix wonders what he’s thinking about. Felix is at least happy to hear that Jeongin is actually looking forward to dancing with them, and if Changbin wouldn’t still have one last exam, Felix might have dragged both of them to his dorm room and danced with them right then and there. 

As they both stare into the distance, Felix thinks about how this is already the end of their first college year, and how much has changed since the end of the first semester. He has grown so fond of Jeongin in such a short time, and while it feels like he has known him for way longer than a few months, he also realizes that their friendship and bond are still in a vulnerable spot. Jeongin probably won’t go anywhere any time soon, especially not since he and Seungmin seem to like it a lot in their friend group, but still, Felix finds himself feeling a bit sad that Jeongin is going on vacation for a few weeks now. 

He’s pulled out of his thoughts when he hears Jeongin’s ride arrive, and without thinking he grabs the younger’s wrist and pulls him into a hug. Jeongin gasps softly but gladly hugs him back as Felix briefly tucks his face in the crook of his neck and caresses the back of Jeongin’s neck. He breathes in Jeongin’s scent for a bit, basking in his warmth and trying to burn it into his senses so he can hold onto it when Jeongin is away. 

“I’ll miss you, Innie,” Felix whispers as he pulls back a bit and gently rests his hand on Jeongin’s jaw, running his thumb over the skin of his cheek, and he smiles when Jeongin’s cheek reddens under his hand. 

“I’ll only be away for a bit,” Jeongin mutters, his eyes flicking between Felix’s ones and elsewhere before he softly adds, “But I’ll miss you too.”

Felix’s heart skips a beat and warmth spreads through his veins at Jeongin’s admission, and he can’t hold back a bright smile, which Jeongin mirrors bashfully, leaning into Felix’s touch as he still caresses Jeongin’s cheek. 

It feels like they’re in their own world for a moment, and it reminds Felix a bit of when they played seven minutes in heaven, only now Felix isn’t only physically attracted to Jeongin, he’s in love with all of him, and gosh he wants to kiss Jeongin again. His eyes flick down to Jeongin’s lips and he unconsciously licks his own before he slowly hovers closer, pulled in by Jeongin’s aura. His thumb runs over Jeongin’s warm cheek, and when he briefly removes his gaze from Jeongin’s lips to look up, Jeongin’s eyes seem to reflect Felix’s desire to kiss him. 

When they’re only a breath apart, their noses brushing as Felix tilts his head, Jeongin averts his gaze and turns away with an apologetic expression and deep red cheeks. Felix’s stomach drops a little, but he understands it if Jeongin might be a bit shy to kiss in public like this, or— maybe Jeongin doesn’t even like him that way. 

“I should probably get going,” Jeongin whispers, one of his hands finding Felix’s hand that is still cupping his jaw and slowly lowering it. Felix is ready to say goodbye and overthink by himself in his room, but then Jeongin, still holding his hand, leans in and kisses Felix’s cheek softly. “See you in a few weeks, Lixie.” 

Felix is stunned as he tries to process the peck Jeongin gave him and he only absentmindedly manages to wave as Jeongin scurries away, getting into the car where his driver is waiting for him. Felix’s heart is pounding in his ears as he watches the car drive away, touching the spot on his cheek where Jeongin kissed, and he doesn’t know if Jeongin just assured him with that kiss or if it will make the wait for Jeongin to be back even more excruciating. 

For the rest of the day at least, Felix can’t stop thinking about Jeongin kissing his cheek. He may have turned away when Felix was about to kiss him on the lips, but the kiss on the cheek definitely felt like an assurance or maybe even a teaser for what might come later? (Or maybe that is wishful thinking.)

Either way, Felix is both assured and he can’t wait for Jeongin to be back, even now he’s only been gone for a few hours. First things first, though, waiting for his friends to be done with their exams, and maybe they can distract Felix from thinking too much about Jeongin. 

He’s been thinking of talking to Changbin about his feelings, too, especially since the soccer finale where Changbin thanked him for being the sweetest when Felix simply told him he’s not an afterthought. He really wants to let both Jeongin and Changbin know how much he cares for them, how much he’s grown to like them even more on top of his initial attraction towards them. Because he’s fully sure of his feelings for both of them now, and he doesn’t think he can keep it all to himself much longer.

Jeongin going on vacation right after exams is basically the worst timing for that, but Felix can’t wait any longer, and he’s sure that it will be fine if he just explains himself to Changbin. He’ll have to tell them both sometime anyway, and maybe it’s even better to do it individually rather than together, because Felix wouldn’t want them to feel pressured or afraid to admit it if they don’t feel the same for each other. 

So, when Hyunjin is off to a house party with Seungmin (after they’ve celebrated Hyunjin and Seungmin getting together), Felix asks Changbin if he wants to hang out. Seeing Hyunjin and Seungmin finally confess their feeling to each other has made Felix want to follow their example and finally let all of his feelings out. 

Changbin invites him to his home because his parents and sister aren’t home, and Felix feels giddy as Changbin and his driver come to pick him up from the dorms. This isn’t the first time after exams he sees Changbin, but it’s the first time they can properly hang out, and Felix can’t help but want to be close and clingy with Changbin.

“Are you okay, Lixie?” Changbin chuckles softly when Felix leans his head on Changbin’s shoulder and links their arms, massaging Changbin’s muscles as if it’s a stress ball. 

Felix huffs when Changbin pats his head. “Yeah, I am. I’m just happy to be free from classes for a bit and to be hanging out with you again.” 

Changbin ruffles his hair fondly before he lets his hand fall onto Felix’s shoulder and squeezes it. “Same here…”

Changbin trails off, and Felix looks up at him to see a small frown on his face, his lips pursed in thought. Felix wonders what he’s thinking about it, and Jeongin crosses his mind, but maybe that’s just because Jeongin (and Changbin) has been on his mind a lot. 

“What are you thinking about, Binnie?” 

Changbin jolts a little, and Felix grins at his reddening cheeks. “I was just thinking about Jeonginnie’s promise to dance with us.” 

“I’m happy to hear someone else is thinking about it as much as I am,” Felix snickers, and Changbin laughs as well. “At first I thought that it might’ve been a bit silly or that I’ve been a bit pushy with the idea, but Jeongin said he’s looking forward to it as well, so I’m happy.” 

Changbin smiles, and the fond glimmer in his eyes makes Felix’s stomach flip and his cheeks heat up, wondering how Changbin can look at him with so much love in his eyes. “It is a nice idea, I love how you’re so… just— lovely, I guess. You bring people together. And I'm not surprised that Jeonginnie is excited about it. If you can make him excited about sports, you can make him excited about anything.”

Felix's blush deepens and his heart makes a fuss about Changbin’s sweet words, so he hides his face on Changbin’s shoulder for a moment. When his heart is a little calmer he looks up at Changbin seriously. “Don't sell yourself short like that, Binnie. He’s excited to dance with you as well.” 

Changbin softens and rubs his neck with a bashful smile. “I— I know, but my statement still stands. I’m sure he’d still be excited if it’d only be with you, but I guess the excitement to also dance with me is added onto that.” 

“Hmm… okay, I guess you might be right,” Felix mutters with a smile, butterflies raging through his stomach as they arrive at Changbin’s home and Changbin offers his hand to help Felix out of the car. Felix giggles happily and they hold hands as they head into Changbin’s big mansion.

They settle in Changbin’s spacious room with some snacks and talk about everything and nothing, joking around and even playing a game together after ordering some dinner. It’s a lot of fun, and it’s a good distraction for a while, but he did come here with a plan, and as they wait for their food to arrive in a comfortable silence, Felix thinks about it again. He feels more confident to talk about his feelings with how this day already feels like a sort of date, but he’s still nervous, especially because he also has to tell Changbin about his feelings for Jeongin,

“Binnie?” he asks softly, basically draped over Changbin on the latter’s bed, and Changbin hums curiously. “Can we… talk? Or— I guess it’s more that I want to tell you something.”

“Yeah, sure, go ahead,” Changbin sits more upright and faces Felix with a curious look, and Felix would say he isn’t that shy to state his feelings, heck— he has flirted with Changbin and Jeongin plenty of times, but actually stating your feelings out loud has Felix’s heart pounding in his throat, trying to hold back the words he wants to spill. 

He swallows thickly and places his hand on Changbin’s before he gathers the courage to speak.

“I… Maybe I’ve been obvious about it, but I have been wanting to talk to you about my… uhm, my feelings,” he begins, and he hears Changbin take in a breath. “I really like you, Changbin, and— I mean, I’ve found you attractive since the moment we met, but as I got to know you, my attraction for you only grew, and I kept on falling for you more and more.” 

Felix takes a moment to catch his breath between his words, his rapidly pounding heart making him feel like he’s running a marathon, and as he does, he checks Changbin’s expression. His eyes are glimmering with both disbelief, relief, and adoration as he gazes at Felix, and Felix promptly forgets everything he had planned to say. 

Before Felix gathers his composure again, Changbin’s expression turns a bit concerned, and he speaks before Felix can. “I— Really?”

Felix huffs and scoots closer until they’re a bit more than a breath away, cupping Changbin’s jaw and locking eyes. “Yes. Really. I told you you’re not an afterthought, right? I like you, Changbin— so much. I’ll keep on telling you until you’ll believe me.” 

Changbin’s eyes widen before he softens, exhaling deeply, his breath hitting Felix’s lips. “I— You’re really the sweetest, Lixie. I… I like you too. A lot. I hope you know that.”

Felix’s chest fills with warmth and he can’t help but smile brightly. “I know it now, but I already hoped so.”

Changbin snorts softly and a fond smile grows on his lips as Felix caresses his cheek. It reminds him a bit of his moment with Jeongin after their last exam, but only in the back of his mind, because all he can think about right now is Changbin, Changbin, Changbin, and when his eyes trail down to Changbin’s lips, the thought of how badly he wants to kiss him joins the stream of Changbin’s name in his head. 

“Can I kiss you, Changbin?” he whispers, already leaning into Changbin’s space longingly, but Changbin turns away a little, pressing his lips together, and Felix’s heart drops.

“I— What about Jeongin?” Changbin breathes, almost inaudibly if not for their proximity, and Felix exhales as he leans his forehead against Changbin’s. He hopes that Changbin isn’t still thinking that he’s in the way of anything, but on the other hand Felix does understand why he asks. They both can’t deny that Jeongin is part of this… thing the three of them have, and Felix did plan on telling Changbin about his feelings for Jeongin, too, but Changbin scrambled his mind halfway through. 

“I— I like him too, yes— I have feelings for him, and I realize that it might change things for you, but I just want to emphasize that I like you both equally, yet in different ways,” Felix tells him softly as Changbin stares into his eyes. “I… I want to talk to him too, but— I just really want to kiss you right now, if you want, too. No strings attached.”

Changbin sighs shakily, a smile forming on his lips before he pulls Felix closer into a searing kiss, making him gasp before melting into it. His fingers twitch on Changbin’s jaw as their lips drag over each other yearningly, and Felix is reminded of how much he loved kissing Changbin at the party, only now it feels even better, because he knows how Changbin feels for him, he knows that their feelings are reciprocated. 

Kissing Changbin feels like both a warm and safe hug and like his insides and veins are set on fire, and Felix thinks he might get addicted to Changbin’s lips. It feels like Changbin is just as glad to be kissing him again, and Felix is able to let out a lot of feelings he held back before they finally part for air and lean their foreheads against one another again. 

"I like Jeonginnie, too," Changbin confesses softly, and Felix's breath stutters. "I… It— Of course I hope that he likes me, too, but I hope you won't feel bad if Jeonginnie only ends up liking you." 

Felix shakes his head lightly with a disbelieving chuckle, unable to believe that Changbin stays so… sweet at the expense of himself until the end. "And what if he only ends up liking you? " 

Changbin presses his lips together and shrugs, his ears turning red. "I don't know what I'd do. But… I really think that you and Jeonginnie have something beautiful. I— Do you know what you'd do if Jeongin would only like you?" 

Felix pulls back and lets his hands slide down, his cheeks feeling warm thinking about how Changbin thinks his bond with Jeongin is beautiful, but Felix thinks the same about himself and Changbin, which makes Changbin’s question difficult to answer. 

"I— I don’t know either," he replies with a sigh. "I really like you both and I don't want to think about choosing between either of you and breaking one of your hearts— that'd break my own, too." 

Changbin softens and now it's his turn to cup Felix's jaw to make them meet eyes. "It's okay if you choose Jeonginnie—" 

"Don't say that," Felix cuts in without thinking, shaking his head. “I don't want to hear you put yourself last any more. I like you both and until I know what Jeongin feels I won't make any decisions, okay?”

“Okay,” Changbin exhales with a smile, lightly caressing Felix’s cheek. “I just want to let you know that I’ll support any decision you end up making.”

Felix mirrors Changbin’s smile and leans into his space again. “I know, Changbinnie, you’re— You say that I’m the sweetest, but that’s you.”

Instead of replying, Changbin just closes the gap between them and kisses Felix again, this time more briefly and more softly than before, but it still fills Felix with warmth. Felix chases Changbin for another, last, brief kiss, unable to get enough of Changbin. He really doesn’t know what he’d do if Jeongin would only like him back and not Changbin, but they’ll cross that bridge when they find it, when Jeongin is back.

For now, Felix enjoys kissing and cuddling with Changbin until their dinner arrives, which is when Changbin brings up a good question. 

“How are we going to confess to Jeonginnie? Do we want to do that together?” he wonders, and Felix hums in thought.

“Hmmm… Maybe together? Though I don’t know if he’ll feel pressured or guilty to reject one of us,” Felix muses, tapping his chopsticks on his plate. “Although… if we both confess separately and he only likes one of us, he’ll have to reject one of us anyway.”

“True.” Changbin takes a big bite of food as they think together before Changbin swallows and seems to have an idea. “Oh! What if we confess when we’re going to dance together?”

Felix gasps and nods excitedly. “You’re a genius, Binnie! That will be so romantic!”

Changbin chuckles, looking happy with the compliment. “Yeah. Hopefully he won’t have to reject either of us, but whatever happens, let’s enjoy dancing with him first.”

“That’s the spirit!” Felix leans over to kiss Changbin’s cheek, and Changbin returns the gesture, making Felix’s heart skip a beat. 

Like this, he thinks he might survive the wait for Jeongin to come back, and it kind of feels like he and Changbin are already a thing, but however much Felix enjoys it, it kind of feels like something is missing. Not because Changbin lacks anything, but just because Felix knows that there’s a possibility that Jeongin might like them both back, and simply that possibility has Felix selfishly craving for it. 

He really hopes that no one’s heart will have to be broken.

Jeongin is nervous to say the least. His brothers have been teasing him about being distracted and having a crush for almost their whole vacation, especially in the beginning (because Jeongin was still thinking about his moment with Felix before he left) and at the end (because he was thinking about the dancing date with Changbin and Felix), but no matter how many times he has texted Seungmin and his friend told him that it'll be fine and that Hyunjin can vouch for that Felix really likes him and Jeongin is pretty sure Felix wanted to kiss him before the last day before Jeongin’s vacation, Jeongin can't seem to shake off his nerves. 

Seungmin can easily say it'll be fine because his crush actually returns his feelings and they're dating now, but Jeongin has two crushes who are both very likely to already like each other (Changbin basically confirmed that they do), and despite everything pointing to that Felix likes Jeongin back, Jeongin has no idea if they both actually like him back or if they were willing to wait for him to be back from vacation. 

Changbin knows that Jeongin likes Felix (and if he got Jeongin’s hints he should know that Jeongin likes him too), and he knows that Changbin wouldn't simply steal Felix away (if you can even call it that), but if either Felix or Changbin doesn't see Jeongin in the same way he sees them, then he wouldn't blame them if they choose each other. 

Conclusion, Jeongin is overthinking everything, especially because they agreed on a date to dance with each other yesterday and Felix and Changbin said they're looking forward to it. They'll meet at Changbin’s mansion because that's where the party was back then too and apparently Changbin’s family isn’t home often. 

Jeongin has no idea what exactly they'll do except for dancing, and while he doesn't mind just hanging out with the two of them, he hopes that it won’t get awkward if Jeongin would find out that Felix and Changbin are together already, or if somehow Jeongin's feelings will come up. 

"Stop overthinking, Innie," Seungmin laughs as Jeongin throws the fifth button up on the rejected pile on his bed. "They won't care about how you look, they're not like my family or our ex friends." 

Jeongin groans and runs a hand through his hair. "I know, but I'm just hoping that the right outfit will give me some confidence. And it's not like you weren't calling me with a shaky voice right before you'd bring Hyunjin as your plus one to your parents." 

"True, but even that went… somewhat well, didn't it? My parents are slowly accepting that I'm not simply in a rebellious phase but that I'm actually doing what I genuinely want," Seungmin retorts, and Jeongin guesses he's right. "I know that your situation is not the same, but from what I know, Felix and Changbin are very understanding. I mean, they forgave you for not dancing with them because Jaebok pressured you to decline, right? And they didn't even know you well back then." 

Jeongin sighs deeply and nods. "You're right. I… There are just so many things that can happen and I don't know if I should tell them about my feelings and if yes, how I'd even do that." 

"It's of no use to plan those things — trust me, I've tried — so just see where it goes and try to follow your gut, yeah?" Seungmin pulls him into a brief hug before throwing a shirt at him. "And have fun. Also, this shirt looks the best. I've consulted Hyunjin before coming here and he says pink brings out your eyes." 

Jeongin barks out a laugh and pushes at Seungmin’s shoulder, unsure whether he's telling the truth or lying because he knows that Jeongin likes wearing pink and it gives him confidence. Either way, Seungmin managed to give him a little hope that he can enjoy this hangout without succumbing to nerves, so he thanks his friend before he's out and tells Brian to bring him to Changbin’s mansion. 

Changbin will pick Felix up, and somehow that makes Jeongin's stomach churn a little in jealousy, wondering if they aren't excited to see him as soon as possible. He knows that they're excited, they told him over text, but Jeongin isn't the best at shutting out his thoughts. Having grown up with two friends who don't really care about you and one friend and family who do in their own unique way (very differently from Changbin and Felix) doesn't leave Jeongin with much experience on how to tell if people care and in what way, so even though he knows Changbin and Felix definitely care, he keeps on second-guessing himself. 

Those doubts immediately get thrown out of the window when Felix all but jumps into Jeongin's arms as soon as he's out of the car, embracing him tightly. 

"I missed you so much Jeonginnie!" he exclaims before pulling back and cupping Jeongin's jaw with the sunniest smile ever. "How was your vacation? I know that you already said a little over text but I wanna hear everything!" 

"Me too!" Changbin agrees before hugging Jeongin warmly and tightly as well, and it makes Jeongin chuckle at how enthusiastic his friends are. 

He tells them all about it, and it helps loosen him up and not feel so anxious anymore, but when Changbin suggests putting on a playlist to get in the mood to dance, Jeongin's nerves resurface. Half of those are giddy excitement, but the other half has Jeongin feeling shaky and his stomach feeling heavy. 

Changbin offers them a drink and Jeongin gladly accepts, hoping it'll drown away his uneasiness or at least make it easier for him to let go and dance. 

At first, they only vibe a little with their drink in hand, chatting about everything and nothing before Felix pulls them to an open spot in Changbin’s living room. 

"Oh! This is a good song to dance to!" He beams at them and he immediately starts busting out pretty impressive moves, and Jeongin remembers being impressed at the party as well. It makes him a bit self-conscious about joining, but when Changbin starts doing more silly moves and Felix encourages him and they laugh delightedly at Jeongin's impression of a dancing grandpa, he forgets about all the nerves and has a lot of fun. 

Changbin asks if he can lift them up and spin them around, and both Jeongin and Felix all too happily agree, even though Jeongin is a bit embarrassed to. When Changbin goes to him first, grips his waist with the biggest smile, and makes him fly, Jeongin’s heart soars with him and he can’t help but giggle in delight.

Felix is looking at them with what Jeongin can only describe as heart eyes when Changbin puts Jeongin down again, and it makes Jeongin flush. The thought that Felix’s loving look might only be directed at Changbin crosses his mind, but it disappears again when Felix specifically looks at him too, and it fills Jeongin’s mind with pink fluff.

He understands why Felix looked so fondly when Changbin moves on to spin Felix around and their expressions are as delighted as Jeongin felt a minute ago, and for a split-second he can forget about all of his nerves and jealousy and feel like it’s okay if Felix and Changbin only like each other.

When they’re all a little tired from dancing and jumping to the upbeat music, Felix puts on a playlist with slower songs and pulls Jeongin and Changbin close to sway softly to the calm sounds. It’s a bit awkward with three of them, standing in a circle while loosely holding each other’s hands, but it’s also nice, and it kind of makes Jeongin feel proud to have their own unique thing. He really really hopes that this won’t be a one time thing, because Jeongin doesn’t want to think about not being able to do this with Felix and Changbin anymore.

“I really like this,” Felix whispers, voicing Jeongin’s thoughts as well, but nevertheless, Jeongin agrees out loud.

“Me too. I’m glad I can make up for what happened at the party, even if I know you already forgave me,” he tells them softly, and he smiles when Changbin and Felix both squeeze his hands.

“At this point you’ve made up for it a hundred times already,” Changbin chuckles, and Felix agrees softly. “But if it makes you feel better, if it makes you feel like this was needed to forgive yourself, I’m glad as well.”

“It does make me feel better, but… I’m also just happy to hang out with you two,” Jeongin admits, his cheeks burning in the embarrassment of his confession, but he wants them to know that he wants this to be a regular thing between them. As Seungmin has been telling Jeongin and himself, ‘if you want something, just go get it!’, and Jeongin can’t get himself to full-on say it yet, but he can at least try to let them know how much he likes being around them.

Changbin and Felix share a look and it seems like they’re conversing with their eyes, but Jeongin has no idea what it means.

“I’m really happy to hear that,” Felix says, his freckled cheeks bunching up in a smile, and Changbin hums in agreement. They share another brief glance, and Jeongin is starting to get nervous, wondering what they’re thinking, why they seem to be silently discussing something, and why Jeongin has no clue what it could be. “I’d even love to do this again sometime, or… even make this a regular thing?”

Jeongin takes in a breath, wondering if they can suddenly read minds and were communicating Jeongin’s feelings through their own thoughts. When Jeongin doesn’t reply, Changbin agrees and looks at Jeongin curiously, startling him out of his thoughts. Okay they probably can’t read minds.

“I— Me too, actually,” he says softly, his heart pounding in his ears as hope rises in his chest that this at least means that Changbin and Felix haven’t gone off and gotten together while Jeongin was away.

Felix and Changbin both break into a fond smile at Jeongin’s words, and they share one last glance before Changbin speaks up, intertwining his fingers with Jeongin’s.

“I’m glad.” He squeezes Jeongin’s hand and Jeongin thinks he can recognize some nervosity glimmering in Changbin’s eyes. “But, before we plan a next hangout… There’s actually something Lixie and I wanted to talk to you about.”

Jeongin gulps as his heart jumps into his throat. “Really?” Did they talk about their feelings for each other after all? Do they want to gently let me down by telling me they want to hangout platonically with me? Aren’t I interrupting them—

Jeongin’s spiraling thoughts are cut off when he’s pulled to sit on the couch between Changbin and Felix, and he doesn’t know where to look, so he just looks down at his lap, where Changbin and Felix’s hands are resting too, all of their fingers brushing ever so slightly.

“So… Maybe you already know what we want to talk about, maybe not, but we thought it was about time we cleared up our feelings for you,” Felix begins, and Jeongin’s eyes widen as he looks between them. 

“Wh–What?” Jeongin can’t help but stutter dumbfoundedly.

Felix’s hand creeps closer over Jeongin’s thigh to hold both Changbin's and Jeongin’s hands before he continues, a light blush coating his freckled cheeks. “We… When you were away, Changbinnie and I confessed to each other, but we found out we both harbor feelings for you as well, so…”

Felix trails off, and though Jeongin knows what he means, believing it is still a step too far right now.

“You— You both like me too?” is all he can get out of his throat right now, and Changbin chuckles fondly, grabbing hold of Jeongin’s free hand. 

“Yes. We do, and… ideally we want to be together with the three of us, but if you only like Felix back, that’s fine too—” Changbin is cut off when Felix pushes him softly.

“What did I tell you about putting yourself last?” Felix hisses softly. “And why are you assuming he likes me only?” 

Jeongin can’t help but smile at Felix scolding Changbin, and while Jeongin feels like he’s overheating, he gets his voice to work eventually. 

“I told him about my feelings for you,” he explains, and Felix’s eyes widen, his rosy cheeks deepening in color, and somehow his freckles seem to glow. Jeongin can’t help but stare a little before he realizes he should probably say a bit more since Changbin and Felix seem to be waiting for a proper answer from his side. 

“Changbin asked me about it before our exams, and he actually also asked if I liked him too, but it seems like he hasn’t figured that out yet,” Jeongin teases lightly, and he chuckles at how Changbin’s eyes grow big and his cheeks grow red as well. “I…” he takes a deep breath to calm his rapidly beating heart. “I like you both. I— I can’t really believe that you both return my feelings.” 

Felix squeezes Jeongin’s hand with a bright smile directed at both him and Changbin, and the latter still seems to be processing everything as Felix pulls them both into a tight hug. 

“I’m so relieved,” he breathes before pressing a kiss to Jeongin’s temple and then to Changbin’s cheek. “I love you both.” 

Jeongin blushes and Changbin looks down with a bashful smile as well as they both relax in the hug, melting in each other’s arms as they process the fact that they all really like each other. Jeongin is excited and nervous for what’s about to come, but mostly excited to see where things will go, because even though Jeongin often gets ticklish from too much skinship, being embraced like this by Felix and Changbin is nice.

That is– until Changbin’s fingers dip into his waist as he holds him closer and Jeongin squeaks and jolts up at the ticklish feeling. He flushes as Changbin and Felix whip their heads to him and he smiles sheepishly.

“Sorry— that tickled.” 

Felix laughs and Changbin coos at him, which only makes Jeongin blush more, and he pushes them over to make them stop, but it only makes them go on more intently, smothering him with kisses, compliments, and hugs. Jeongin feels like he’ll explode from all the attention and affection he’s receiving, but if he’s honest with himself, he likes it a lot (until he gets too ticklish).  

“Ack!— Mercy– please!” Jeongin begs between breathy laughs, and he tries to overpower them both, but he’s way too clumsy even when Changbin doesn’t use all of his strength. They struggle for a little more before Jeongin accidentally yanks at Changbin’s arm too harshly and they both tumble off the couch, Changbin falling right on top of Jeongin, punching Jeongin’s breath out of him.

“Oof— shit— I’m sorry, are you okay, Innie?” Changbin asks as Jeongin coughs a few times, squeezing his eyes shut as he catches his breath, but when he opens them again, that same breath is stolen away by Changbin’s proximity. "You didn't hit your head, did you?" 

Changbin’s voice is soft in concern and when his hand comes to hold Jeongin’s nape gently as he tilts his head to inspect Jeongin's, Jeongin can't help but let his eyes trail down from Changbin’s lidded eyes to his slightly parted, plump lips. Jeongin gulps in desire, his heart trying to pound out of his chest and into Changbin’s safe hands—

"Innie?" Changbin pulls him out of his thoughts, his breath hitting Jeongin's lips, and Jeongin’s mouth works before his brain does. 

"Can I kiss you, Changbin?" he blurts out and immediately flushes bright red while Changbin only smiles after a brief moment of shock. The latter leans down, still holding Jeongin’s nape as their noses brush. 

“I thought you’d never ask,” he whispers before closing the gap between them and softly pressing their lips together. Jeongin holds onto Changbin’s strong arms as they kiss, and he gets lost in the way Changbin’s lips drag over his so sweetly, the way Changbin holds him, and the way it seems like Changbin has wanted this as much as Jeongin has. 

When they part for breath, Changbin smiles at him again, and Jeongin feels like he’s falling in love all over again. Changbin leans down to kiss Jeongin one last time, leaving the younger breathless as he gets off him and helps him up. 

Felix looks at them with stars in his eyes and overflowing fondness, and it makes Jeongin a little shy, but in a good way. He wants to stay close to them both, be surrounded by their warmth and love for longer, and they seem to feel the same if the way they almost squish Jeongin between them on the couch is anything to go by.

“That was so sweet,” Felix comments, looking at Jeongin and Changbin before his eyes flick to Jeongin’s lips and he licks his own. “Can I kiss you too, Innie?” 

“Yes,” Jeongin answers with burning cheeks and unable to hold back a smile when Felix pulls him closer by the waist. He cups Felix’s cheeks and traces his freckles with his thumb for a moment, admiring Felix’s features. Felix blushes and smiles bashfully as Jeongin does so, but soon enough he loses his patience and surges forward to finally kiss Jeongin again. 

Jeongin melts into it, Felix’s soft, plump lips feeling like heaven on his, and while it’s not his first time kissing Felix, this is the first time he lets himself fully indulge in it, not overthinking and simply letting himself feel loved by Felix and trying to convey his feelings for him in return.
Just like with Changbin, Jeongin can’t get enough of it and chases Felix after briefly parting, the kiss turning a little more heated as Felix licks over Jeongin’s lips and deepens the kiss. Warmth erupts in Jeongin’s chest and his stomach contracts as Felix's tongue explores his mouth, but just as he wants to reciprocate, Felix’s fingers dig into his sides and Jeongin pulls back with a squeak. 

Felix’s eyes widen before he barks out a laugh and Jeongin blushes in embarrassment. 

“Sorry—” Jeongin apologizes, but Felix only shakes his head, poking Jeongin’s dimple. 

“You’re so cute, Innie. Next time I’ll be a bit more careful of your ticklish spots.” Felix emphasizes his words with a soft kiss on his cheek. “You can hold my waist instead.” 

Jeongin chuckles softly and his heart makes a fuss in his chest at Felix’s words, it seems like he still has to get used to Felix’s flirting. 

“Now we can’t leave it here, can we?” Felix crawls over Jeongin’s lap to grin at Changbin too, and Changbin just fondly laughs before pulling Felix into a confident kiss. It kind of reminds Jeongin of the way they kissed at the party, but now it feels even more loving and confident, and Jeongin isn’t jealous and it doesn’t make his stomach churn. Instead, it only makes his heart flutter.
When Felix and Changbin pull back and take a moment to gaze into each other’s eyes, Jeongin can tell how much they feel for each other, too, and it makes Jeongin feel warm. He thinks that them parting is the end of their kissing session, but it seems like to Changbin and Felix it was only the start, and they still have lots of affection to let out of their system. 

Changbin wants to kiss Jeongin again, saying that now he got a taste, he wants more, and Felix takes his time to let his hands roam over the full expanse of Jeongin and Changbin’s arms, shoulders, and anywhere else he can reach as Changbin boldly pulls Jeongin onto his lap. 

Jeongin blushes but lets Changbin and Felix do their thing, enjoying Felix's warm touches and Changbin’s lips on his own. Changbin is holding Jeongin's hips and Jeongin has his arms slung over Changbin’s shoulders as they kiss, while Felix is hugging Jeongin from behind, caressing his and Changbin’s arms and leaving the occasional kiss on their skin, his lips leaving warmth in their wake.
They get lost in a rhythm until Changbin and Jeongin are out of breath and Jeongin gets a little ticklish from Felix’s fingers and lips dancing over his skin. Felix and Changbin tease him about being so sensitive and ticklish, but Jeongin lets it slide because he’s feeling full of love, and maybe he likes the attention even when they tease and coo at him. (But maybe he also tackles them when it gets too much and shuts them up with a kiss, just because he’s feeling bold and happy.)

More than half a year ago, Jeongin would have never imagined he’d end up here, with two people his lifelong friends would never approve of, having fun, feeling loved, and loving in return. He will be forever grateful for Felix and Changbin giving him a chance, even when his ex-friends were rude to theirs, even when Jeongin let himself be influenced by his ex-friends and rejected their first offer to dance together, even when Changbin thought he didn’t have a chance with Felix because of him, even when they had to wait for Jeongin to deal with his ex-friends and then had to wait for Jeongin to be back from vacation.

It’s already almost dizzying to think about how much his life has changed in such a short time, he has gotten better friends, become more confident, and even gotten into a relationship with two people who make him feel so much he thinks he’ll explode. 

If this is already how he feels when they’ve only just confessed, Jeongin is definitely looking forward to what else is to come, how much their bond will grow, still. 

“Binnie, you’re still going on vacation, too, right?” Felix asks when they’ve finally settled down on the couch, snuggled together, still. Changbin hums in confirmation and Felix cranes his neck to look at them. “Shall we dance together again before you leave, then?”

“Yeah sure, I like that idea,” Changbin replies with a smile, and Jeongin agrees. “That way you can hopefully get enough Binnie affection so you don’t miss me too much.”

Felix and Jeongin laugh at Changbin’s exaggerated cuteness, and Jeongin teases, “Hmm. I think I’ll survive with Lixie.” 

As soon as it’s out of his mouth, though, he regrets it, remembering how Changbin used to be afraid of being an afterthought, and he opens his mouth to correct himself, but before he knows what to say, Changbin jokingly hits him. 

“Yah! That means no lifting and flying for you,” Changbin scolds, and Jeongin gasps.

“Wait! No— I take it back—” Jeongin hurries to clarify, putting on his best pouty face. “I’ll miss you lots— especially if you’re not going to lift me up and spin me around when we dance.”

Changbin barks out a laugh and tackles Jeongin into a hug, and Jeongin is happy to see that he didn’t mess up just now. “You’re so cute, Innie! I’ll only forgive you if you give me a kiss.” 

Changbin just out his lips and Jeongin chuckles fondly before exaggeratedly rolling his eyes and kissing Changbin. It’s more a press of lips than a proper kiss because they both can’t stop smiling, but it doesn’t matter because it still makes Jeongin’s heart happy. 

“You two! Stop before I explode!” Felix exclaims, grabbing their shoulders and shaking them. Jeongin and Changbin laugh, and Changbin kisses Felix’s cheek.

“It’s your fault that we’re like this,” he tells him, and Felix tilts his head in confusion. “You’re the one who brought us all together.” 

Felix blushes and waves Changbin off. “I just did the setup, it’s not like I made you like each other, that’s all you.” 

Changbin and Jeongin share a look and Jeongin’s cheeks feel warm when Changbin looks as if he’s only just now realizing that Jeongin likes him for him, and not because of Felix, or because he has to or something like that. Jeongin turns to Felix again so his heart doesn’t pound out of his chest, but Felix isn’t looking at him any less fondly than Changbin is. 

“True, but I’m still grateful for you introducing us to each other,” Jeongin says to distract himself from everything he’s feeling. “And you’re the one who insisted that we all dance together.” 

Changbin agrees softly, now directing his loving gaze towards Felix instead of Jeongin, and Felix’s eyes positively sparkle, as if the stars covering his cheeks made their way into his eyes. 

“Ah— Just c’mere you two.” Felix pulls them close to kiss them one by one before hugging them, and Jeongin and Changbin melt into it. 

They spend the rest of the day like that, and Jeongin is already looking forward to the next time they’ll dance together, even though Changbin will leave for a bit after that.

Fortunately, Changbin makes sure to smother them with affection and indulge both Felix and Jeongin in all their wants the day before he leaves — Felix wanting lots of kisses and wanting to touch Changbin’s muscles, and Jeongin wanting to be lifted up and spun around multiple times. With that, Jeongin thinks he might miss him a little less, and it’s nice to still have Felix, who shares the same feeling as him. 

And Jeongin isn’t usually one to show his affection very openly and boldly, but when Changbin returns a few days before the next college year starts, Jeongin wants to make the most of their freedom before classes start again, so he hugs and kisses him to the extent that even Changbin and Felix comment on Jeongin’s unusual behavior.

With new friends and boyfriends, Jeongin is sure he’ll enjoy this year, and even though he still gets embarrassed when Felix and Changbin are being too sweet, he only finds himself wanting more. 

And if their dancing hangouts become a regular thing for them in private but also at parties, then that only makes Jeongin love them and their relationship even more. 

The end.