Chapter Text
-1-
Minho is in front of the mirrors after taking a bath when he hears a message notification. He proceeds to dry his hair as he looks at his phone, one hand with the towel and the other holding the device.
The message is from Felix, and it says, ‘Hyunjin said he’s sick.’
Setting the damp towel on one shoulder, Minho types back: ‘He told Jongin hyung yet?’
Felix’s answer is ‘Yes,’ and Minho nods to himself.
He leaves the bathroom and immediately looks at his roommate, who’s still sleeping. Minho walks over to check on his temperature; it’s down now. He notes to himself that he should refill the water container on the bedside table.
Minho quietly goes to his bed and sits down, mentally searching if he still has any medicine on him. He replies to Felix: ‘Lets go to Hyunjins later?’
The immediate response is: ‘I’m in. His roomie would be annoyed tho.’
‘OK - but who cares about him?’ is what Minho sends back.
“No. Really. They’re enemies,” Felix says later after the lunch break. He’s accompanying Minho as they once again queue in the cafeteria. They have already eaten and are just back to take a packaged lunch for their sick friend.
“Enemy roommates?” Minho inquires as he ponders what food to choose for Hyunjin.
“They don’t get along. Hates each others’ guts.”
“Why are they still roommates, then?” Minho asks the million-dollar question. The line before them moves, and they step to the side.
Felix seems to have expected it and answers smoothly, “It’s the university. As long as they don’t…harm one another, univ says it’s fine. Hyunjin says they ignore each other most of the time.”
Minho ponders, remembering that he is new to this university. “How about you and Seungmin?”
It’s their turn now, and the cafeteria lady asks what they’ll have. Minho politely points to two choices before requesting her to pack the food for to-go.
“We get along fairly. How about you?” Felix answers then questions back. He takes out his wallet to pay, but Minho stops him.
“Seonghwa and I are fine.”
After settling the payment, they leave the place and return to the dorms. It’s good that neither has classes in the afternoon today, and dance practice isn’t until five o’clock.
“Black hair suits you, by the way,” Felix compliments as they approach Hyunjin’s room. He rubs his chin as he stares at Minho.
“More than the previous colors?” Minho asks with a playful smile, dodging one guy who almost knocks into him.
Felix bumps Minho’s shoulder. “Those were amazing on you. Univ is just strict.”
They stop at Room 325 and stare at each other before Minho knocks on the door.
“Hold on!” someone yells from the inside.
Minho furrows his eyebrows at the unknown voice before coming to a realization. Felix does the same. “The roommate, definitely,” the latter whispers.
Then the door opens, and out goes a guy wearing a beanie while wearing large, comfortable clothes. “Yes?” His eyes focus on them.
“We’re here for Hyunjin,” Felix announces.
“Right,” the beanie guy says before soundlessly sighing. He leans sideways on the doorway to let them in.
Minho and Felix pass through, eyes finding Hyunjin on his designated bed, slumbering peacefully as though his roommate hadn’t shouted earlier.
“Did you inform him we’re going?” Minho inquires, staring at their sleeping friend.
“Yeah, yeah,” Felix answers, tone defensive.
They stand in the middle of the room, not at all awkward. Then, there’s a sound from their back, and they turn to look at the doorway.
“I’ll…leave. You can stay here. Just don’t sit on my bed,” the beanie guy—the roommate—announces. Then he’s off.
Felix’s eyebrows meet, almost pouting annoyingly. “We’ll just sit on the floor, I guess,” he responds as if the person he’s replying to is still there.
“A peach,” Minho comments.
When Hyunjin wakes up just four minutes later, the first words from his mouth are: “So, you met Han Jisung?”
“Han as in one?” Felix tilts his head.
Hyunjin yawns once. Then twice. “The one and only.”
Minho rolls his eyes fondly at his friend. “We did.”
“Asshole-y when he talked?” Hyunjin asks. Then, he finally notices the food and medicine on his bedside table. He opens the packed lunch without asking if it’s for him.
Felix purses his lips. “I wouldn’t go there yet.”
‘Hmm’ is all Hyunjin says as he devours the food.
Meanwhile, Minho tries to lie on the floor, not minding if it’s dirty. “Looks like a squirrel, though.” He watches as the room’s ceiling fan twirls.
“Quokka,” Hyunjin corrects, pointing his chopsticks into the air. “Especially when he arrogantly smiles.”
“Enemies to lovers,” Minho suddenly thinks, realizing he has said it out loud late. He snorts.
Hyunjin squawks. “How dare you!”
Minho laughs him off before poking Felix’s shoulder. “Strangers to lovers.”
“What?” Felix asks, obviously confused. He looks at Minho and then at Hyunjin.
“And what about you?”
Felix claps his hands, triumphantly declaring, “Friends to lovers!”
Minho sighs. “But we’re not friends.” He lifts his feet into the air, his upper body still lying on the floor. The other guys are not questioning the action, not even being confused. Maybe they’re getting used to Minho now.
“What’s with these tropes anyway?” Felix questions.
Hyunjin tries to clap with his occupied hands. “Ooh! Should we bet what trope he prefers when falling in love? We test them out individually!”
They look at each other for a half minute before collectively disagreeing, noisily voicing it out.
“No.”
“Let’s not.”
“Nah.”
“Do you even want him to fall in love with you?” Felix looks at Hyunjin with one eyebrow raised, a smirk dancing on his lips.
Hyunjin rolls his eyes. “I’m eating. Don’t make me puke.”
“You’re the one who brought it up,” Minho tells him.
Hyunjin rolls his eyes again.
An hour later, Felix and Minho decide to bid their goodbyes. Hyunjin beams gratefully at them, his eyes disappearing with his wide smile. He thanks them for the food and medicine.
“Don’t get up. We’ll see ourselves out,” Felix says, waving enthusiastically with his tiny hands.
“Get well, all right?” Minho nicely threatens as he plucks himself off the floor.
They reach the door and open it, closing it once outside.
“Gonna change for practice?” Minho asks Felix as they start to walk.
The latter nods his head. “You?” They walk through the hallway, passing multiple dorm doors.
“Practice clothes already in my bag.” Minho vaguely gestures to the bag he has. Felix nods.
They pass one door open, and Minho unconsciously looks inside, only to find it’s the floor’s shared living space and kitchen.
And there, all alone at a table is Han Jisung.
In a split second, he looks up and locks eyes with Minho. In another split second, the next thing Minho sees is the wall.
Then he turns to look at Felix. He’s talking about practice now and about their leader graduating soon.
“Do you think Nayeon-noona will step up?” Felix stretches his arms up, arching his back.
Minho’s eyes narrowed. “Maybe. But Jongin-hyung still has a year, right?”
They stare at each other, still walking.
“You like Nayeon-noona, huh?” Minho teases.
“I admire her as a dancer!” Felix grumbles. “‘Bout you with Jongin-hyung?”
The corner of Minho’s mouth twitches as he teases Felix again, mocking his tone. “I admire him as a dancer and leader!”
“Hyunjin is asking what’s for dinner,” Felix reads from their group chat.
Minho, who’s staring at the same message, frowns. “Maybe let’s ask what he wants.”
They’re lying on the floor of their practice room, ignoring other club members walking about.
“Reckon roomie’s still out? That’s why Hyunjin wants us to go back?”
The thought of Hyunjin’s roommate—with the maroon beanie, he recalls—comes to Minho’s mind. Especially when he was sitting at a table. Minho’s memory clears, despite being short, and he realizes Han Jisung had looked like he was on his phone, scrolling on the screen, browsing mindlessly. He was probably waiting for Minho and Felix to come out.
“I think,” Minho starts to say. “We should go now.”
At the same time, Hyunjin’s reply comes through, and Felix reads it. “Oh, he wants McDonald’s.”
“Like a sick child asking for ice cream.”
The second time Minho knocked on Hyunjin’s dorm, he and Felix were prepared for the roommate’s voice.
“Um, hang on,” someone says from the inside.
Once the door opens, Minho’s eyes are up, wanting to see if Han Jisung is still wearing a beanie and if it’s indeed maroon, just like his brain says.
But there’s nothing on the top of Han Jisung’s head.
“Oh, hmm,” the roommate hums. “Come in, I guess.” Like earlier, he moves sideways to let the two people go in.
Hyunjin immediately lights up and stands upright on his bed, the blanket on his body almost flying off. Felix sprints to help him sit up. Meanwhile, Minho eyes Hyunjin’s bedside table to place the things they bought from the fast food. But there’s a pitcher of water there, plus a half-empty glass.
“Did you drink?” Minho asks, staring at the pitcher with a sticker of their university’s name on the bottom. He knows it’s from the shared kitchen.
“Yes, thanks,” Hyunjin answers, not even looking at Minho but the paper bag in his hands.
Minho sets everything down on the bedside table, taking everything out and setting them. But as he does this, he turns around to search for the roommate. Han Jisung walks behind them, going to his bed to take his phone. The gears in Minho’s mind move a tiny bit.
“Please don’t get too loud. I think someone across is already sleeping,” Han Jisung announces before heading towards the door.
“This early?” Felix’s tone is in apparent disbelief.
Minho knows Hyunjin is rolling his eyes off his face. But he waves in front of him and says quietly, “Did he have dinner?”
“Didn’t notice. Don’t care,” Hyunjin replies, taking a Bic Mac from the food on his bedside table.
“He’ll probably do now. With his friends, maybe,” Felix says thoughtfully. He already has three pieces of chicken nuggets in his hands as he tries to sit on the floor.
Minho smiles, tucking a tiny bit of information in for now. He gets his large fries. “No cold drinks for you, sir,” he reminds Hyunjin.
“Yes, Minho.”
“Yes, Mom,” Felix says at the same time.
Hyunjin giggles. “Yes, Mom,” he repeats to Minho.
Minho stares at him with a serious face. “If I’m not being nice right now, I’ll smack you.”
-4-
After a few days, Seonghwa and Hyunjin are now better. But it’s Minho who’s gotten the cold now.
He lies on his bed as his roommate hovers over him to check his temperature. “Quite high. Hmm. I’ll inform Jongin-hyung during practice,” Seonghwa announces.
Minho nods slowly and thanks him. Then, “Seonghwa, if we’re not friends, do you think you won’t be doing this?” He gestures to the medicine and water on his bedside table.
Seonghwa looks at Minho sideways with an eyebrow raised, seemingly confused. But he answers anyway. “I think I’ll still do. You would do too, right?”
“But what if we’re…not nice with each other?” Minho persists.
“Well, if I’m not nice, I probably won’t.” Seonghwa walks to his side of the room to take his bag. “So, I suppose Felix and Hyunjin will be here later?”
Because nodding had made him a little dizzy earlier, Minho just closes his eyes. “Yes.”
The next time Minho opens his eyes, it’s to a knock on the door. He looks around and finds no one in sight to open it. Yelling is not an option as Minho feels his throat is dry, so he stands up. He slowly treads to his dorm room, expecting his two friends.
“Hello,” Felix greets as Hyunjin yells, “Food is here! We are here!”
Minho groans before giving a tiny smile. He walks back to his bed and lies again. “Lunch time already?” he asks.
“Yes—” Felix answers as Hyunjin hollers, “And it’s a blissful day.”
Minho turns to Felix to question him silently.
“We saw his roommate all by himself at the cafeteria,” Felix explains, doing a slight shrug. His mouth wobbles.
“Ha! He’s got no friends, then! Probably because of his personality.” Hyunjin looks like he’s too triumphant with the new information.
Minho goes silent, thinking of Hyunjin’s roommate—Han Jisung. “Do you really think so? Do you know him that well?”
“Yes!” Hyunjin replies. He places the plastic of packed lunch on the bedside table before glancing at Minho. He pauses, taking in Minho’s face. “What?”
“I— I just think,” Minho starts to say. “That I’m too tired to speak.”
“Ah! Just rest!” Felix comes over to put the blanket over Minho.
Hyunjin sits on the floor just beside Minho’s bed. “But shouldn’t he eat?” Then he reaches for the packed lunches.
“Feed me,” Minho jokes, looking at Hyunjin, gaze teasing and hopeful.
But his friend doesn’t even hide his look of disgust. “Ew.”
Felix laughs so hard that his attempt to sit on the floor ends up lying on it instead, his hands on his stomach.
“Will you ever tell us why you hate your roommate?” Minho finally asks Hyunjin once they all finish eating.
Hyunjin pauses his tidying and stares at Minho. “Shouldn’t you ask for a nicer bedtime story?”
Minho rolls his eyes and does a light scoff. “Never mind, then.”
“Oh, but I want to hear it!” Felix requests with a charming smile on his lips.
“All right, fine, but lemme finish this first.” Hyunjin finishes cleaning up, tying the plastic bag and placing it near the door with the garbage bins. He goes to the shared bathroom and washes his hands before returning to his place on the floor. He sighs and tilts his head to the ceiling. “The first time I met him, he immediately demanded I give him my bed.”
“And?” Felix tries to ask for continuation. “Didn’t you get to the dorm room first?”
“Yes! That’s why I declined. Not my fault he was late. He took it to heart, I guess. Now, he’s always punishing me by being so messy!” Hyunjin waves his hands all over the place, his body moving along. “Used bobby pins on the sink! Clothes everywhere on the floor that I always remind him to pick up, but he just grumbles at me—he does it anyway, but why the grumble?” Hyunjin visibly deflates. “And he’s always so loud in the morning—his alarm. But it doesn’t even wake him up! It’s his fault for always going to bed late, but why bring me into it?”
“But…aren’t you also…untidy?” Minho asks.
Hyunjin looks at him pointedly. “Not always! And he’s way untidier!” He crosses his arms over his chest.
“Okay, but…don’t you stay up late too?”
“Only because he stays up late. I can’t get to sleep with him too lively in the late evening.”
Felix and Minho look at each other. Then, Minho tries again. “You can’t drown him out?”
Hyunjin sighs. “I try to. Really.”
“And you don’t ask him.”
“I also tried to. But honestly, I don’t want to talk to him most of the time.”
Minho blinks and looks up to the ceiling, the gears in his mind working. “What course he’s in?”
He hears Hyunjin grumble. “I dunno. Music or something.”
Minho nods. “All right, now tell me what happened in dance practice today.”
-5-
The hallways on this side of the university are almost empty. But as Minho looks inside the rooms, the students are sitting, each with different instruments, others with headphones and laptops.
Minho has already looked into five rooms when he finally sees what he’s looking for. He knocks at the door and watches Seungmin, talking with another student, look up like everyone else.
Seungmin’s eyebrows meet, his head tilting to the side. He asks Minho an unspoken question: What are you doing here?
Minho signals to him to come closer. Still confused, Seungmin understands the motion and stands up, asking his co-student to wait.
“All right, did something happen?” Seungmin asks right away.
“None. But, we’re quite friends—” Minho starts.
Seungmin cuts him. “We met first! But you replaced me with my roommate.” He pouts angrily.
Minho blinks, tongue between his teeth in his closed mouth. “We’re friends, right?” When Seungmin raises an eyebrow at him, Minho continues, “Lemme ask you a small favor.”
Seungmin leans on the wall next to the door before waving his hand for Minho to keep talking.
“Do you know Han Jisung?”
“Yep. Guitars. Piano. Producing.”
Minho gets taken aback, not expecting to have this information. He becomes in awe for a second before focusing on his task. “Right. Can you talk to him?”
“I can talk to him. I have a mouth. I have a voice,” Seungmin retorts.
Minho rolls his eyes. Seungmin smirks like a proud dog.
“Talk to him about what?” the latter asks later.
“Anything.”
Seungmin looks at Minho, analyzing him with his eyes. He nods. “I want coffee for seven days.”
Minho raises his chin, looking at his friend with narrowed eyes. “Not good.”
“Yeah, you’re right. It’s fine. We’ve been wanting to talk to him anyway. He’s always alone.” Seungmin gestures to the other student he was talking with.
Minho’s eyes shift to the person mentioned, and he notices him looking at them. The guy smiles at Minho with his dimples. “Make your friend do the approaching,” Minho orders.
Seungmin is visibly insulted. “Do I not look friendly?”
“You are. But you don’t look nicer.”
“A compliment.”
As Minho gets back to his dorm after a long day, he feels his phone vibrates. Tired, he takes out his phone and reads a message from an unknown number.
‘Seungmin here. Something /has/ happened. Also. Why don’t /you/ talk to him, too?’
-7-
Felix bursts into the practice room, pausing to look around before running to where Hyunjin and Minho are. “Your roommate was just in our dorm!” he announces, eyes wide at the former.
“What?” Hyunjin asks, shocked. His eyebrows are furrowed, and his mouth is scowling.
Minho ponders. “Must be for a group project. Isn’t Seungmin also in Music?” He puts down the bottled water he’s been drinking.
“Yes, and yes!” Felix answers. “I think he recognized me as your friend.”
Hyunjin narrows his eyes. “How is he? How is Seungmin?”
Minho does a small laugh. “He’s not that evil or life-threatening, is he?”
Felix cuts Hyunjin before the latter says anything. “Surprisingly, they seem close. Maybe Seungmin’s one of his friends.”
‘Huh’ is what Hyunjin says. Minho nods, mumbling, “That’s…news.”
“I say!” Hyunjin scowls once more. “Ah, never mind. Maybe Han Jisung is good to his friends, and he’s just bad with me.”
Minho pats him proudly. “That was a good reflection. Don’t suppose you can also conclude the reason?”
“Homework for another day,” Hyunjin replies, shrugging. “One Han Jisung topic a week is all we’re allowed.”
Minho has been so busy studying and dancing that he barely remembers texting Seungmin. ‘Got the news - HJS OK?’ he sends.
Seungmin’s quick reply is: ‘Han Jisung is OK. Your typing, however, is /not/. It’s terrible.’
Minho removes himself from his outside clothes and immediately goes into the bathroom for a quick bath. Minutes later, he checks his phone and finds another message from Seungmin.
‘Asked him to join us for dinner. But he said no.’
Just then, almost like it’s a sign, Minho’s stomach grumbles. “Ah, right,” he hums to himself. “Time to order.”
Once he’s in another new set of clothes, Minho concentrates on ordering food as he sits on his bed. He takes a while before finally deciding what he’ll get. He even asks Seonghwa if he has eaten dinner, but the other boy replies that he’s done eating.
Minho watches the animations of his order process on the app through his phone, looking at the estimated arrival time and calculating when to go to the dormitory gates.
A minute later, he finally replies to Seungmin: ‘Do better.’
It bites him later as Minho goes to the gates to get his food order.
As Minho sees the delivery man at the end of the steps of their dorm building’s entrance, Seungmin sends another message. It reads, ‘/You/ do better.’
Minho shakes his head with a small smile before looking up from his phone. He pauses before the delivery man and asks, “For Lee Minho?”
“No,” the man answers. “For Han Jisung.”
“Uh, that’s me,” someone says then. The voice is from behind Minho.
It prompts him to turn around, and there stands Han Jisung…with a maroon beanie on his head. Han Jisung, who is Hwang Hyunjin’s enemy roommate. Kim Seungmin’s newfound friend. And Lee Minho’s present curiosity.