Chapter Text
When Wooyoung moved into that new apartment complex, he thought he was leaving behind the annoying neighbors and loud noises at ungodly hours of the day (turning on the blender at 5 a.m. should be considered illegal), as he was leaving the working class behind to live with the “I work from home and have more conscience about others” class.
And yes, the noise had noticeably decreased, and all his neighbors seemed to mind their own business, the only problem was at the beginning of each month, when the other tenants moved in or new residents arrived. The constant noise of trucks and furniture being dragged upstairs was already a familiar sound, so when one Monday morning, at 7 a.m., the familiar sound of a truck backing up pulled him out of his dreams where he was fighting Voldemort for the last taco on a table. Thank goodness, because he was losing and he would be very sad if he lost that taco.
Even though it was still many hours before he had to get up, since he was a dance teacher at a prestigious academy in Los Angeles and his classes were in the afternoon, the sound of the truck opening its doors reminded him that it would be impossible to sleep any longer.
His roommate was still not awake, if his brain remembered correctly, Yeosang started his master classes at 10 am. Well, it had been a long time since he had made him a good breakfast, he might as well do something nice for the poor student since he was already awake.
Since his brain refused to wake up 100%, and he was afraid to put sugar in the eggs instead of salt, he made himself a cup of steaming strong coffee, and when he saw through the crack of his window that it was a sunny and somewhat chilly autumn morning, he decided to go out on the balcony for a few minutes, and also, not to be nosy, but he was wondering who his new neighbors would be.
He opened the balcony doors and blew into his cup to keep from burning his esophagus with the hot beverage, looking carefully at the truck parked right in front of his apartment, two workers were already taking care of bringing down only black sleek furniture, nothing out of the ordinary, and nothing flashy or spectacular.
Since his drink was already drinkable, he took the first gulp and let out a long sound of pleasure, not a moan as such, but some kind of growl that, in Yeosang's words, his father would not have envied.
From the moving truck they pulled out a professional gaming chair, quite expensive to tell the truth, and that increased his interest in his new neighbors, either it was a young man, or a family with a teenage son with expensive tastes. Obviously it suited him that it was a young, single man, but the demographics of the area fit his spoiled teen theory better.
He was so focused on the chair and his steaming coffee that when a bird decided to stop at the feeder Yeosang had placed on his balcony, despite Wooyoung's repeated complaints and his ornithophobia, the bird took Wooyoung completely by surprise, letting out an inelegant scream and waving his hands like a broken scarecrow -or more like those inflatable things at the gas stations- to scare the damn bird away.
“Get the fuck out of here! Shoo! Shoo!” he shouted in a high-pitched voice and in Korean, ducking down in case the fiendish bird decided to attack.
“Are you all right?” A deep voice, and to his surprise in his native language, sounded not far away from him, startling him even more, as he definitely did not expect a sensual voice to speak to him, so he jumped again, this time spilling half of the contents of his cup on his shirt, “Oh, shit, sorry!”
Wooyoung, feeling his heart in his throat, looked up, ignoring the burning sensation in the skin of his stomach and chest, what he saw almost made his stomach drop to his feet, for in front of him, and looking almost like a dream, was a young man, he looked not much older than he was, but a little taller, with beautiful shiny black hair, small slanted eyes, but what made him want to sink into a hole in the ground was that the stranger was wearing a white tank top and simple gray sweatpants, and underneath all that he could see well trained muscles, a body that would be the envy of all.
The person standing in front of him could only be his new neighbor, judging by the box full of things in his strong arms. Wooyoung again felt panic starting to build up in his stomach, but this time it was not because of a bird, but because he had he just made a complete fool of himself in front of his new neighbor, who coincidentally, happened to be the most handsome guy his eyes had seen in a long time?
Wooyoung froze in place, staring at the new boy, his pajama top completely stained with coffee, true, he hadn't bothered to take off his pajamas, which consisted of an oversized t-shirt and shorts, also oversized, with an adorable fox print. Not to mention that he hadn't bothered to look in the mirror when he woke up, and his hair was probably a mess, he wasn't so sure about the state of his eyes, which were probably swollen and rheumy, and he probably had dried drool stuck in the corner of his mouth from his habit of sleeping with his mouth open. Shit. Double shit. Triple shit.
He let out another inelegant shriek (he had already embarrassed himself so much, what more was there to do) and ran into his house, slamming the shutters shut and backing away from the door like the plague.
“What's gotten into you?” Yeosang's sleepy voice rang out from the kitchen, his friend had obviously woken up earlier from the noise of the move as well, his hair still tousled and his eyes so puffy that if he had not spoken, Wooyoung would have thought he was still asleep.
“The...t-the...t-the...neighbor…” Wooyoung whispered urgently, lunging at Yeosang and almost throwing him into the blinds, where he forced him to look.
“Oh wow,” Yeosang said, peeking through the cracks in surprise, Wooyoung peeked a little too and saw the Sexy Neighbor grabbing another box from the truck, making his biceps bulge out extraordinarily, “you don’t see that every day.”
Wooyoung let out another groan and plopped down on his belly on his comfortable sofa bed with a regretful sigh.
“Don't tell me, all that fuss was about him," Yeosang guessed.
“You and Jongho can shove your fucking birds and bird feeder up your asses,” Wooyoung said in a voice muffled by the cushions, “I told you that I have a phobia of them!”
“You know there are better things we can shove up our asses,” Yeosang told him, slapping his butt, “It's not that big of a deal.”
“Not that big of a deal?!” Wooyoung shouted, feeling offended and raised his face from the cushions to look at his roommate, “I just made a fool of myself in front of the most sensual neighbor we've ever had, I apologize if you don't mind, Mr.-I'm-very-happy-with-my-boyfriend , but I've been single for too long, and, most importantly, I think I've become a virgin again through abstinence.”
“Too much information,” Yeosang grimaced.
“He may well have been the love of my life! And I just made a fool of myself in front of him! I'll never be able to look him in the face again.” Wooyoung said, throwing himself dramatically back onto the cushions, “Besides, I look like a beggar and he looks like a Greek god. What are the chances of a Korean guy moving into this neighborhood full of white people?” He rolled onto his back and stared wistfully at the ceiling.
“Stop being so dramatic,” Yeosang told him between yawns, going to the kitchen and pouring himself a cup of coffee, “besides, how many times have we talked about this? Stop assuming everyone's sexuality, you don't know if he's interested in men.”
“Right,” Wooyoung sighed, “no gay man has such simple taste in furniture, anyway, it's a great loss to the gay community, and more importantly, he just saw me make a fool of myself, so I'm going to burn these pajamas right now.”
“I gave you those pajamas,” Yeosang said, frowning as he watched Wooyoung sink his face back into the cushions, having another one of those moments where he completely doubted why he had befriended him.
****
To Wooyoung's luck (or not so much), the Sexy Neighbor's move ended in holy peace, all day long there was a constant clatter of furniture and boxes going up and down the stairs, and judging by the noises on Wooyoung's ceiling, the new tenant had rented the apartment right above him, which meant a higher probability of finding him again, so Wooyoung had a very important resolution, almost like a new life goal.
If there was one thing that Wooyoung had, it was self-confidence, his MBTI might say that he was an introvert, but Wooyoung had always been sure that he was not an introvert at all, he always showed himself confident and happy to the world, so he had decided to make a better impression on Sexy Neighbor, not only because there was a chance that the new guy might be gay, but because his pride couldn't let the only memory he had of him be an embarrassing one; plus, judging by his six other friends, all of Koreans, he liked to have people of his own race around in case he missed his home country.
Before leaving his house, he always looked out the balcony windows to see if Sexy Neighbor was lurking, and he was beginning to learn his routine judging by the footsteps coming and going in his apartment. He had a 9 to 5 job, he was sure of that, but, since Wooyoung’s classes started in the afternoon and ended late at night, he didn't really know his evening routine, because when he came home, the lights in the apartment above his were already out, or only the faint glimmer of a television was visible in what must have been the bedroom.
One night he returned home with every muscle in his body begging for mercy. It had been a rather fruitful series of classes, so the tiredness in his body only reminded him of a job well done, so he had decided to come back early and not train himself. He knew that Yunho would force him to repeat the same choreography over and over again, watching him with sharp eyes, not counting the 40 minutes of torture (a long stretching session to improve his flexibility) that he always subjected him to. No sir, he had had enough of the four consecutive lessons he always taught.
He got out of his car with a groan, he hated that most of the parking lot was dark, but, and after living there for so long, the fear of a killer raccoon attacking him had diminished considerably, still, there was always that possibility, so he walked in a hurry until he reached his building.
Outside the apartment next door, one of his neighbors was outside putting out her trash can outside for the garbage service. She was a nice lady in her fifties with whom he had never had any problems, and Wooyoung occasionally brought her some of his cooking when he forgot that he only had to cook for two instead of for his whole family.
“Mrs. Jones, long time no see!” Wooyoung greeted her, it would be rude not to, he just hoped that since Mrs. Jones was almost always alone, she wouldn't take too long telling him about her day.
“Ah! Woo!” Mrs. Jones greeted him with a motherly smile, “Have you come from classes? But look at your long hair! What's your boyfriend going to say to you with such long hair?” she clicked her tongue as she saw a few unruly strands escape from his half-ponytail and fall across his forehead.
“I haven't had the time to cut it, besides, Yeosang…”
“Excuse me,” a low male voice interrupted him from behind, and Wooyoung, being the scaredy-cat that he was, jumped up, putting his hand over his heart, and dropped the gym bag with his dance clothes on the floor, “oh, sorry, I didn't mean to scare you.”
“Sam!” Mrs. Jones said in a jovial voice, a smile spreading from ear to ear and Wooyoung's stomach dropped again, he remembered very well who that deep, raspy voice belonged to.
“It's San, actually,” Sexy Neighbor replied, smiling slightly, on one of his cheeks having such a cute dimple that Wooyoung almost had a heart attack right there.
In addition to his cute dimple, Sexy Neighbor (San?) was wearing another tank top, only this time it was black, an oversized jacket, as well as black sweatpants that were too loose, a small towel slung over his shoulder and had a large bottle of water in one hand.
“Right, I apologize.” Mrs. Jones apologized and patted him on the shoulder, “Good to see you! Have you gotten used to the time difference?”
“Yes, it was hard the first few weeks, but I seem to have found my rhythm,” San said, smiling again and Wooyoung wanted to scream, he had not one dimple, but two, and a beautiful smile bordered by perfect white teeth, and when he spoke, he seemed to purse his lips just a little. God, he was too cute! Someone save him! “That's why I’m going to the gym, but I don't know where it is and I took advantage of seeing you out here to ask you.”
“The gym is in the building across from the pool, next to the business center, just follow the path that leads to the manager's office,” Mrs. Jones explained.
“Oh! The pool I know where that is! I went swimming the first few days.” San said, with another disarming smile, he had to stop, or Wooyoung's legs would start to shake.
“Then you won’t get lost!” Mrs. Jones said, and San let out an adorable laugh, Wooyoung must have made a strange noise, because they both turned to see him, suddenly acknowledging their presence. “Oh, how rude of me! I thought you two had already met, since you're both...well, yeah,” Mrs. Jones touched one of Wooyoung's arms and looked at San, “San, this is Woo...yong? Sorry if I just butchered your name, it's a bit complicated for me to say it right, I just call his boyfriend “serious guy” because I find it even more complicated, I think I should learn…”
“Ah, fox boy,” San said in Korean, more to himself, his eyes widening slightly, though the only hint of that was the arching of his eyebrows, “you live in the apartment below mine, don't you? I'm Choi San.” he introduced himself, this time in English, though he bowed slightly like a good Korean.
“Ah...yes…” the other stammered, feeling embarrassment begin to creep up his neck, as well as a soft blush on his cheeks. “Jung Wooyoung, nice to meet you.” He forced the muscles in his face to smile, though he probably only managed a pursed-lipped grimace.
“Well, nice to see you again Mrs. Jones, don't forget to come back to me for help if you need me to fix anything again,” San said, the disarming smile never leaving his face, “Nice to meet you, Wooyoung-ssi,” he addressed the other in his native language and Wooyoung's heart skipped a beat. He wanted to respond in some way that would have an effect on him and completely erase the whole embarrassing past encounter, but his brain short-circuited between English and Korean and all he could utter was a strange sound similar to an animal dying.
But would he always embarrass himself in front of him?
The only good thing about this encounter was that he now knew his name: Choi San.
*****
“I swear, Yeosang, he was smiling like the angels themselves!” Wooyoung said in a pitiful whimper, rolling around on Yeosang's bed, after his encounter with the sexy new entrance at the entrance of his building learning his name, he had immediately fled to his roommate’s bedroom, not caring that he was doing homework.
“Yeah, yeah, there, there now,” Yeosang muttered, not paying attention to the other's constant babbling.
“And you know the best part? I know his name! Choi San,” he lifted his face a bit then he covered his face with his hands again and rolled back onto the bed, “sounds very fitting, don't you think? He's as strong and tall like a mountain.”
“Aha,” Yeosang replied again with a monosyllable, not taking his eyes off the complicated table full of numbers and figures, Wooyoung would never understand why Yeosang had wanted to study Mathematics in the first place, but being a math teacher seemed to be his ultimate dream.
“You're not even paying attention to me,” Wooyoung pouted and threw a small pillow at him, which hit the back of Yeosang’s head with practiced accuracy, “at least now I know that he's one of the few residents who uses the gym of the complex, I'd better get my money's worth and make use of the amenities.”
“I think it’s wiser to make sure he’s gay, or at least bisexual, before you make a move on him,” Yeosang sighed heavily, deciding it was better to give his best friend some attention so he’d leave him alone once and for all, “and you? Exercising? Please, I want to pay to see that.”
“I do like to work out! I just… don't do it very often because I get back from my classes way too late and in the mornings I prefer to… do other things…”
“Like lazing around…”
“But this will also serve to improve my physical condition and the status of my muscles, since I only have good legs,” he slapped one of his thighs hard, “you might as well help me! You or Jongho...you are both muscle beasts,” he rolled his eyes, turned onto his stomach and hugged a pillow, “nothing confirms his interest in me more than seeing me do squats, maybe if I catch him looking at my butt…”
“I don't want to be part of this adventure that smells like failure to me,” Yeosang rubbed his face with one hand and pursed his lips, “I don't know, Wooyoung, maybe you shouldn't do anything rash and nothing more to force it, look what happened with Hongjoong…”
“But Hongjoong was the one who forced his feelings for me, we all know very well that his soulmate is and always will be Seonghwa, our relationship only served to make him realize that Seonghwa is all he needs and I’m too much of a work.” Wooyoung frowned a little at the mention of his last failed relationship, which had lasted about two weeks a few months ago, and he also had learned never to date a guy from their close circle. “Besides, I will not do anything out of the ordinary, if something happens, it will be by chance and because fate wanted it that way.”