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Mark has been praised his entire life.
From his family always cooing over him and praising him for the smallest thing he did, to being called “SM’s golden boy” and having his name said together only with appreciative words, 'Mark Lee' has always been a name that brought smiles on people’s faces. Sometimes Mark can get overwhelmed by the amount of love he is showered with, but most of the time he is just grateful that the compliments only seem to fuel the need to do better in him.
Another thing about Mark is that he is friends with everyone. When Jeno first told him this, Mark tried to deny it, but all it took to change his mind was a quick list of names from Chenle and the realization that he was, in fact, friends with a lot of people settled in. This statement includes not only other idols, but also the people in the production teams in his company, the executive directors, cameramen, make-up artists, basically everyone that had a long-standing contract with SM.
Knowing so many people for so long comes with an insane amount of trust. To Mark, recording booths and filming sets feel like a second home. And yet, the first time he filmed solo, he could feel the nerves simmering under his skin, making themselves known in the slight tremor of his hands and the lump in his throat, and threatening to burst out at the first given occasion.
"You ready?" the director asks, startling Mark out of his thoughts.
Because here he is, a year later, getting prepared to head into a long day of filming for 'Golden Hour', his second big solo project. When he checks with himself, Mark is pleasantly surprised to realize all he feels is excitement.
"Never been more ready," Mark answers, and the thumbs up coming from the director makes him giddy enough to ignore the little bit of hairspray that goes into his eyes a second later.
Ten minutes later, Mark confidently gets in front of the camera, hearing the song he had been so excited to work on loud and clear from the speakers, and then it feels as if somebody pressed a 'Fast forward' button, because suddenly it’s already late at night on the filming day. Mark’s eyes are starting to slightly sting because of his contacts and the strong lights glowing straight in his face, making him regret refusing the eye drops the make-up artist offered him earlier.
The photographer in front of him takes a second-long break to look at the screen of her camera and Mark gratefully squeezes his eyes, before he hears the shutter going off again, and he opens them back up, letting his eyelids drop heavily and low. The photographer lets out a small appreciative sound, and Mark can’t help but preen at it, directing his eyes away from the camera but keeping the same stance.
People move on a set all the time and if there’s no filming happening, you can even hear people talk about what they’re doing or what they can do better. But as Mark is getting into a new position with his arm loosely on top of his head, shutter going off continuously, his eyes naturally drift behind the cameras when someone enters the set and people start to greet him.
“What?” Mark doesn't even realize he spoke out loud until a second later and he adds, “You really are here?”
The familiar sight of Jaemin’s smile does things to his heart that were embarrassing after how long the two have been together. “Yo”, Jaemin says, “Let’s film together.” That last reply makes the people on set smile, some even laugh out loud, but in Mark's still-not-functioning-properly-brain it plants an idea.
Every cell in Mark’s body is screaming at him to go to Jaemin’s side, and the latter seems to know his inner fight before Mark can even realize there's one happening, because Jaemin smiles and adds, “Come here after you’re done.”
Mark’s brain is still running a thousand miles per hour, and he can’t hold back another exclamation of “Woah, what is this,” before the photographer, with an endeared smile on her face, announces out loud, “Okay, let’s wrap this up in a minute and then we will take a break”.
While Mark finishes the photoshoot, he glances at Jaemin and sees him giving some sort of commentary to the camera.
Weeks later, in a short break he has after work, he will watch the video and feel his heart melt even when Jaemin calls him a fool. There’s a sort of familiarity in the way he says that, some sort of underlying affection and Mark can read it better than he can read his own thoughts. He makes sure to cling to Jaemin immediately after, saying nothing more than a simple “just because” when Jaemin pretends to be annoyed and asks him what that’s all about. He knows Jaemin won’t ever be annoyed to have his full attention.
After indulging in one last look in Jaemin's direction, Mark fully immerses himself in his work knowing that the faster he finishes, the faster he can be by his boyfriend's side, though his brain stays alert for anything that would signal the end of the photoshoot.
“All done here. Thank you for the good work.”
That’s all Mark needs, before he slowly gets down from the couch and drags himself to where Jaemin is waiting for him, his shoes making a harsh sound against the pavement and his head tilted back with the heaviness of it.
And Jaemin waits for him, with a smile on his face, knowing that the unstoppable force that was a tired Mark will crash into him sooner or later.
“Baby,” Jaemin says, smile widening a fraction. “Baby, are you done filming?”
It’s only natural, really.
Mark has been working all day, his body starting to feel the slightest bit of heavy and he trusted all of his crew with his life so he was comfortable to do anything in their presence. To top that, his boyfriend was right there, waiting for him.
So it’s only natural that a second after he falls into Jaemin’s arms, he brings his head back up and goes in for a kiss, realizing a beat too late there’s a camera pointed at them.
But to be honest, Mark doesn’t really care. He knows it will be edited out. He knows his team is reliable and trustworthy. So after a second of thought, he kisses Jaemin’s lips again and then once more, before he finally drops his head back on Jaemin’s shoulder.
Jaemin’s embrace feels like coming home, and all of Mark’s barriers come down, if only for a second. His brain is slow, so slow that only when Jaemin calls him baby again does he remember how to speak, and his apology to the cameraman comes a few beats after they almost bump into him because of their tight embrace.
Mark would’ve been embarrassed if other people (read: Donghyuck) were there to see the coos he exchanged with Jaemin for a few seconds. But, excluding the cameraman, nobody paid them any attention from the start, so it was almost as if he and Jaemin were in their own universe.
And shame is not a concept for Jaemin, so why would it be for Mark?
He squeezes Jaemin with all of his strength and the other rises to the challenge, so for a second they swing uncontrollably to their sides, still exchanging coos. A muffled laugh coming from behind the camera gets Mark to stop, not before Jaemin pouts his lips at him and he gives in for one last kiss.
The camera is still directed to them and the cameraman is trying to stifle his laugh at the pair in front of him. Mark doesn’t want to give the editing team more work to do (actually he doesn’t want to give them more blackmail material, because sometimes it felt that Donghyuck split himself into everyone on set to tease him for everything he did), so by the time Jaemin asks him if he has already eaten, Mark has an arm thrown over the other’s shoulder and guides him to the other side of the set.
“Are you asking me for a date? In the middle of work, just like that?”
“Are you saying yes?”
“You know I’d say yes even if you took me out to a convenience store dinner,” Mark says, bringing his head close to Jaemin’s for a second.
“Who said I’d take you out to dinner? I just asked if you ate.”
Mark lets out a sudden laugh at that. “We have one more set to film on and then we’ll take a longer break. You can look up restaurants around here in the meantime.”
“Do you underestimate me that badly? The restaurant is already booked and the orders were placed, I just need to confirm the time so they start working on it,” Jaemin says and his smile closely resembles one of a snake’s. ‘Fuck him and his self-assuredness,’ Mark thinks and the only thing that stops him from leaning in to wipe that smirk off his boyfriend’s face is the director’s voice calling for the end of their break.
They move sets, and Mark keeps Jaemin close to him at all times. After the director explains the concept to Mark, they get one more short break while everything is getting ready. Mark asks Jaemin about the others, but he zones out two seconds into him talking, no other thought in his head but ‘Jaemin pretty’.
He grabs Jaemin’s head and shakes it gently side to side, overcome with a surge of affection violence, and he doesn’t understand why the other is moving forward and to the side until he speaks out, “Let’s get you going hyung, the set is ready.”
And Mark gets going and he lets his body loose. He knows the vibe and despite Jaemin occupying 99% of his brain, Mark still paid enough attention to the director a few minutes before to know what he has to do. He films and he films and when the music ends and they call him to the screen, everyone in his way tells him he did well.
Mark observes himself through the screen, but half his mind is elsewhere, and it’s not even a second from when the video ends that he speaks out to the director.
“So I was thinking earlier that we can get Jaemin on this set for a few takes, and let him vibe behind me. If you don’t think they’ll fit, it’s okay, I just think it’d be fun to try it.”
“Yeah, sure, let’s try it” the director nods and it’s enough for Mark to link his arm through the space between Jaemin’s own and his body to drag him in front of the camera. He feels like a kid all again, and it makes a giggle build its way out of him.
That is until the music starts again and Jaemin unlinks their arms to face the other way and Mark lets the sound take control over his body, making it his personal mission to make it perfect and finish filming as early as possible.
The next break takes place when the production team needs to check the result of the impromptu takes, and decide what scenes need a retake.
“You make me think of ‘Ice Age’ with that mask. You know, hairy like the mammoths,” Jaemin jokes, and Mark’s brain was yet again too busy staring at his boyfriend to understand the joke at first. It seems like he’s not the only one who is embarrassingly enamored, because he’s aware of Jaemin’s eyes following his features with a smile on his face when he starts laughing. A second later, Jaemin’s eyes are still stuck on him, but his hands are busy taking off the cover of his camera, and he doesn’t even have to say anything to Mark before the latter starts posing.
A gentle hand comes up to his face and raises up his mask, and the army of butterflies in Mark’s stomach go crazy at that simple gesture. He tries shooing them away while changing his poses, but they’re very stubborn fueled by Jaemin’s endless shower of compliments, so he has to make do.
When Jaemin shows him the pictures an hour later at the restaurant, Mark can see that despite him letting his eyelids drop to make his gaze look heavy, the corners of his eyes were still slightly raised, betraying his smile from under the mask. And Mark wants to kiss Jaemin again for capturing him so beautifully, stuck between his stage persona and his true, endeared self, but they’re in public so he has to hold it in.
Mark has debuted countless times and he has learned choreography after choreography, but right now it seems like not being able to kiss Jaemin is the hardest thing he’s ever had to do.
When the director declares filming done and lets everyone go for a dinner break, Mark feels just the right amount of giddy at the thought that he’s gonna have a surprise date in the middle of such packed schedules. He couldn’t have made it so good, not even if he planned it.
He’s thankful at the fact he’s working solo and that his team is so understanding, because there’s no other way he could’ve had dinner outside of the set if it weren’t for that.
They end up in a small restaurant, close enough to the set so that Mark can make it back there in time once the dinner ends. It’s cozy, and there’s less than five people in the entire establishment, so when Mark takes a seat across from Jaemin, he slumps in the chair and comfortably links his ankles with the other’s. They smile at each other for a beat too long, until Mark breaks the silence.
“Who would’ve thought that you’d really come?”
“How many times do I have to tell you this? You should have more faith in me, hyung,” Jaemin says, tone feigning hurt, but the smile on his face tells he’s just messing around.
And Mark wants to reply, to dramatically tell Jaemin that he will never doubt his words ever again and to swear eternal trust in him, but he’s interrupted by the waiter coming to their table, setting countless plates of food in front of them. Everything looks divine and Mark doesn’t hold in his excitement, letting out small sounds of wonder every time a new plate is placed in front of him.
When the waiter leaves, Jaemin picks up the cutlery from the middle of the table and hands it to Mark despite him being perfectly capable of getting it himself, and says, “Are you that impressed by a dinner date in a small restaurant from this corner of the world?”
“Dude, the thought is more than enough. I told you, you could’ve taken me to have a convenience store dinner and I would’ve been over the moon,” Mark says, already digging in the food and letting out an appreciative groan at the flavors spreading in his mouth.
“No, no, we don’t do that. Next time I’ll make sure to cook a healthy dinner for you, none of that convenience store talk.”
“I'm not gonna complain about that when I’m getting another date out of it.”
Jaemin rolls his eyes with a fond smile on his face, before picking up his own fork while adding, “There’s no winning with you.”
“Good thing you’re not that competitive then. But if you want to win against me, you just have to tell me, I’ll go easy on you,” Mark says between two bites, before he laughs, “God, what are we even talking about?”
“Everything, anything, nothing,” Jaemin says promptly before he looks outside, seemingly contemplating on his answer. “Life, maybe?”
The smile slowly blooming on Jaemin’s face in the middle of his answer was enough for Mark to start giggling again, but the last part makes him smack the table with the force of his laughing fit.
When he’s finally able to catch his breath and he starts eating again, Jaemin asks him about his day, and he has such a fond look on his face while listening to Mark, that the latter feels like he could talk forever if only it meant Jaemin kept looking at him like that.
Forty minutes and a lot of empty plates later, Mark is perfectly aware that they are in public, but Jaemin’s relaxed attitude that he’s had all the time they’ve been in the restaurant is making Mark think that he probably went out of his way to ensure they will not be disturbed there, and that no information will get out of their booth. So he ditches every thought aside, except the one that tells him to be close to Jaemin, and gets out from his side of the table to drape himself all over Jaemin’s body.
“You keep calling Jeno a samoyed, but you’re just as big of a puppy as he is,” Jaemin says, but throws his arm behind Mark nonetheless, to allow him to settle in comfortably.
“It takes one to know one,” Mark says, nuzzling his head into Jaemin’s neck. His belly is filled and the scent of his favorite person is flooding his senses, so Mark thinks that we would be able to take a nap right then and there if it weren’t for the pings coming continuously from his phone.
“You probably have to head back.”
“Mhm.” Mark barely registers Jaemin moving, and he only knows the other took his phone when he begins reading the messages out loud. With a groan, he puts his hand on Jaemin’s mouth to interrupt him from reading more. He knows he has to go back on the last set of the day, but Mark would much rather stay here, thank you very much.
“Baby, let’s get you moving to end this night faster, alright? You’re gonna have a lot of fun, and I’ll wait home for you,” Jaemin’s voice is much gentler when he speaks this time, and Mark is a weak man, all he can do is listen to his boyfriend and get up.
His only consolation is that Jaemin pats him softly when he gets up as well, and then after paying, he interlaces their fingers together. The fresh air outside wakes Mark up, and he stares up at the sky, trying to gaze at the stars despite the terrible light pollution around them.
He can only see two, so he closes his eyes and inhales the night air, head still tilted back, taking his time to think back on the night. A smile blooms on his face, and he looks down to where their fingers are still interlocked, before looking up at his boyfriend’s face. Mark’s smile becomes bigger when he finds the other already looking back at him, mirroring his expression.
Mark feels drunk on love, and he doesn’t even realize they’re back on set until he stumbles over some cables because he was too busy staring at Jaemin’s face. Jaemin almost disentangles from him when he doubles down in laughter, and it makes Mark join in with equal intensity.
It’s only natural really. Mark loves Jaemin and Jaemin loves Mark and that has always been natural for them.