Work Text:
“so you’re saying we should just rent a house together?” soobin asks taehyun, who was proposing that they all live together on a random tuesday night.
“correct. it would be convenient! i just started law school, kai just started med school, you and beomgyu hyung are already looking to live together, and yeonjun hyung is looking for a place close to his work. i’m telling you, this house would solve all our problems.”
yeonjun looked at taehyun, he wasn’t wrong. it was much cheaper to split renting a house and utilities with five people. the house had three rooms, and was conveniently close to yeonjun and soobin’s workplace, taehyun and kai’s university, and beomgyu’s studio.
beomgyu and yeonjun were brothers who were family friends with kai. taehyun was childhood best friends with soobin, and soobin was dating beomgyu — the rest was history. they all coincidentally attended the same college, albeit being different levels, but they all formed a surprisingly compatible friend group.
“you’re already always at my house anyways, what’s the difference between living all together?” kai chimed in.
and so, a month later, the five of them all moved to a three bedroom house. yeonjun got a single room, the reason being “i’m the oldest ”. beomgyu and soobin obviously became roommates. leaving kai and taehyun to room together. if there was one thing taehyun was thankful for soobin, it was introducing him to beomgyu, which lead to him meeting kai.
kai quickly became his best friend, being the same age as him, and having the same passion for studying. during the four gruesome years of college, they had each other.
The spring that came to me
My cold heart melted away
In the warm smile that was like sunlight
The blooming flower of emotions
I felt it was love
“i can’t believe you found this house accidentally.” kai said while fixing their bunk beds.
“perks of being a part time barista and having a friendly face.”
“it’s perfect, three bedrooms, two bathrooms, and spacious. it’s like.. it was made for us.”
“you’re fine being my roommate?”
“of course i am, tyun! why wouldn’t i? you’re my best friend!”
“as expected, i’m the best roommate for you.”
“yeah, plus we have a similar workload. i won’t have to feel bad going home late.”
taehyun worked part time as a barista in their university, while kai worked part time as a library assistant in their university as well, just enough for them to cover the bills and pay rent, as they both are scholars.
meanwhile, on the room on their left, beomgyu and bickering which side should they sleep on.
“i told you, we should’ve bought a bunk bed.” soobin says.
“ah, so you don’t want cuddles?” beomgyu fires back.
“i never said anything about that! come on, gyu, you should obviously sleep at the wall side so you don’t fall. you move a lot when you sleep.”
“but that would mean i would wake you up whenever i need to go to the studio.”
soobin works as a receptionist to a nearby hotel, while beomgyu does freelance music producing in his free time, while being a music teacher.
“i wake up earlier than you, you don’t need to worry.”
“are you sure? like sure?”
“i won’t offer it if i'm not willing to do it.”
beomgyu then pulls soobin to the bed, resting his head on his shoulder.
“can’t believe we’re living together now.”
“what do you mean? we’ve been dating since high school! it’s about time we live together!”
“damn, i’ve been dealing with your annoying ass for so long now.”
“and i’ve been dealing with your lazy ass for so long now!” beomgyu says and proceeds to tickle soobin.
it has been a week since the five of them started living together, and it proved to be quite easy. yeonjun works as a dance instructor and an occasional model, and was quite busy. beomgyu and soobin mostly remained in their room in their spare time. kai and taehyun were both studious, spending all their free time studying.
“we should eat out tomorrow, to celebrate living together.” yeonjun says over dinner. it was one of the rare nights where yeonjun would have the time to cook, but whenever he did, it was like a feast.
“i’m down, but what place would be open late at night? that’s when we are all free.” beomgyu says.
“hmmm. let’s get barbecue? they’re open 24 hours.” kai suggests.
“okay, it’s settled then. barbecue with soju.” taehyun says.
“that’s what i’m talking about!” soobin says, excited to drink.
tomorrow rolled around, and taehyun just finished his shift from the campus café, ready to let loose with a few bottles of soju. he checked his phone, receiving a text from kai.
hyuka ^^
i’m outside the café, tyun! let’s go to the bbq place together <3
taehyun couldn’t help but to smile, he’s lucky to have a best friend like kai. he must’ve waited at least an hour after his shift from the library.
it was a snowy night, and taehyun forgot to bring a jacket, but lucky for him, he has kai.
“i knew you would forget to bring a jacket.”
“you know me so well, thanks kai.”
taehyun proceeds to cling on kai’s arm, one of his favorite things to do.
“how much are you going to drink tonight?”
“hmmm.. it depends. are you going to drink?”
“just a bit.”
the two arrived at the bbq place, the three chois were already there and ordered food.
“ah! how i miss hangouts like these!” beomgyu says and opens the first soju bottle of the night.
taehyun immediately secured a whole bottle for himself and kai, as he knew kai only liked to drink a certain flavor of soju.
“this is literally heaven.” soobin says as soon as he takes the first bite of meat.
“we should make this a tradition. let’s out every two weeks?” kai suggests while he cooks the meat for the whole group.
“i agree. something to look forward to.” yeonjun says and drinks directly from the soju bottle.
while cooking, kai made sure to cook meat for taehyun first, as he knew he loved eating while drinking.
an hour later, beomgyu had already downed three bottles just on his own, yeonjun was singing along with the songs playing in the background, and soobin was laughing at everything he saw.
“are you three really older than us? your alcohol tolerance is so laughable!” taehyun teased.
“hey! we downed bottles by ourselves! you and kai were too busy making flirty eyes with each other to get drunk!” yeonjun complained.
“we’re making flirty eyes, tyunnie?” kai said and laughed.
“ignore him, he’s drunk.”
“you are drunk too. your cheeks are red. your lips are red.”
“why are you looking at my lips, huh? you want to kiss me?”
if there was one thing about taehyun, he was always more flirty when he was drunk. flirty remarks were normal in their friendship. but for some reason, tonight was different. kai actually wanted to say yes.
“excuse me? the bill please.” kai asked the server, it was time for them to go home as they already had their fun.
thankfully, the three older ones had enough strength to walk back to their house. but the same can not be said about taehyun, as he was pleading for a piggy back ride.
“fine. you’re lucky i work out.” kai said and granted taehyun’s wish.
“i’m just putting all that height into work.” taehyun said and rested his head on the back of kai’s neck.
“where are the others?”
“they walked first.”
“hmmm.. kai… you smell nice…”
“i smell like alcohol and barbecue.”
“exactly… you smell nice…”
“just how much did you drink? this is the drunkest i’ve ever seen you.”
“2? 3? 4? i lost count, all i knew was i had to save the blueberry soju for you.”
“thanks taehyun…”
“are we near yet?”
“yep, just a few more steps.”
“kai…. kai….”
“hmm?”
“thank you for coming into my life.”
“i wouldn’t have survived college without you. you’re…”
“i’m what, tyunnie?”
they already reached their house, and taehyun was already asleep, a shame he wasn’t able to continue what he was saying. kai laid him gently on the lower bunk bed, despite that being his bed.
he covered taehyun with a blanket and prepared a bottle of water near him, so he can drink it immediately once he wakes up.
“you know kai…” yeonjun suddenly says, leaning on the doorframe.
“you scared me hyung!”
“you didn’t close the door… but… you know kai, you two would make a great couple.”
“everybody says that.” kai says and looks at taehyun, who was sleeping soundly.
“you should head to bed, hyung.”
“think about what i said, okay? besides, i think it’s going to happen one way or another.”
I know this cold world won't hurt me with you
You who always held my hand
kai went to bed that day with millions of thoughts running around his head. almost everybody who knew them assumed they were a couple in the first place. but… he’s scared. what if he starts seeing taehyun in a romantic light but he doesn’t reciprocate it? there’s a lot of things that can go wrong with relationships. he’s satisfied with just being his best friend, as it comes with no risks.
taehyun woke up with a headache, but he immediately saw the bottle of water beside him. he was sleeping in the lower bunk bed, despite it being kai’s bed. oh how lucky he is to have kai, he’s also certain that kai carried him all the way home. it was his turn to do something nice for him.
he went to the kitchen, as the older ones were probably still asleep, as they drank more than he did. taehyun scans the kitchen and refrigerator, and the only thing he can cook is instant noodles with an egg on top. not the fanciest thing in the world, but it’s something that kai loves.
kai wakes up to the smell of someone cooking his favorite instant noodles, and he immediately stands up to go to the kitchen.
“oh, good morning tyun! you’re not hungover?”
“not much, thanks to the water you gave me. thank you for taking care of me last night.”
“you’re cooking our breakfast, it’s a fair deal.”
taehyun grabs a bowl for the two of them and brings out the apple juice that he bought yesterday for kai.
“you know, i want to bake again.”
“hmm? what’s stopping you?”
“doing the dishes. i like cooking and baking in general, but it’s really doing the dishes that stops me. i don’t like cleaning up.”
“bake all you want, i’ll do the dishes.”
“r..really? won’t that be a hassle to you? it’s not your mess to clean up.”
“you’ll give whatever you're baking anyway, besides, washing the dishes is my favorite chore. i don’t mind.”
“are you really sure, tyun?”
“yep, don’t worry. should we stop by the grocery store later?”
“i’d like that.”
meanwhile, soobin and beomgyu were secretly listening in on to their conversation.
“who do you think will confess first?” soobin instigates.
“i’m betting on my boy kai! he’s not the type to beat around the bush.” beomgyu says confidently.
“taehyun isn’t one to hide his feelings either, so i really wonder why they aren’t acknowledging it?”
“yes, they love each other, but maybe they haven’t realized they’re in love with each other yet. there’s a difference.”
“makes sense. maybe taehyun is scared to risk something.”
“kai is also not the biggest risk taker i know, so maybe they’re scared? but either way, i just know they’re going to become a couple sooner or later.”
later that day, kai and taehyun went to the grocery store to restock the pantry and to also buy baking ingredients for the cookies that he wanted to bake.
“oh kai! want to make tanghulu with me?”
“sure! let’s get strawberries and oranges.”
“you know, i always make sure my lips look like tanghulu when i’m buying lip products.”
kai’s eyes wandered to taehyun’s lips after he said that, he’s not wrong . his lips particularly look nice and soft to kiss. but he immediately snaps out of it. is it even appropriate to look at your best friend’s lips thinking about kissing them?
“hmm? is there something wrong? do i have something on my face?”
“no no. you were right about your lips. they really do resemble tanghulu.”
kai and taehyun went home and immediately started cooking for the whole group, with taehyun making tanghulu and kai baking cookies. however, kai could not take off his mind on what taehyun said earlier. if his lips look like tanghulu, i wonder if his lips also taste sweet?
taehyun was a man of his words, and he indeed washed all the dirty dishes that they both used. kai couldn’t help but to feel grateful he had taehyun in his life.
night rolled by, and taehyun was getting ready for his classes tomorrow by fixing his bag, while kai was already doing his nightly skin care routine. he then touched his lips, the image of taehyun’s lips can’t escape his mind. is this even fucking normal?
it was finally time for them to go to sleep, taehyun was already sound asleep on the upper bunk bed, while kai was twisting and turning. he checked his phone, it was already midnight. he needed to sleep as he had morning classes, but there’s something he must do.
so kai stands up, and carefully and quietly goes out. he then hopes that soobin and beomgyu was still awake. he tried to knock, but there was no response, and the door was unlocked.
he opens the door, their room was dimly lit, surprisingly, beomgyu was the one at the outer side of the bed, making it easier for kai to wake him up.
“hyung.. wake up… i’m having a crisis.” kai says and taps beomgyu. he considered him as the second closest friend after taehyun, and his older brother figure.
beomgyu groans, but he opens his eyes. he would never ignore kai.
“hyung, is it bad to fantasize about kissing your best friend?” kai asks beomgyu, who was clearly annoyed about being woken up in the middle of the night.
“for the love of god, just make out with taehyun already!”
“make.. make out?”
“kiss. eat faces. all that jazz.”
“is it normal to think about your best friend that way?”
“this is taehyun we are talking about. i’m surprised it took you this long to realize you’re in love with him.”
“i’m in love with him…?”
“oh dear god. i knew it, you’re inlove but you just didn’t know!”
“is it that obvious?”
“if there’s one thing i know about love — eyes never lie. your eyes form the shape of hearts whenever you talk to taehyun.”
“so i’m in love with taehyun…?”
“maybe. only you can answer that question.”
“thanks, hyung! i’ll buy you take out on the way home tomorrow. sorry for disturbing your sleep.”
“no worries. lock the door when you go out.”
as soon as kai left, soobin opened his eyes.
“so you were eavesdropping the whole time, huh?” beomgyu teased.
“well, you won the bet. kai will probably confess tomorrow.”
“yeah, that kid really doesn’t like to keep things waiting.”
kai then went back to his bed, he already knew the answer to his own question.
the first thing kai did when he woke up was to give taehyun a hug from the back while he was brushing his teeth.
“hmm? are you sick?” taehyun asks as he finishes brushing his teeth.
it’s now or never.
Please just say you love me
We are more than friends, so show me
I don't need no lie, no lies
Oh, baby, I need you
“i love you, taehyun.”
“yeah, i know.”
“no no…” kai says, taehyun turns to him, now facing him eye to eye, “i’m in love with you.”
“r..really?”
“i’m sure.”
“well thank god, because i feel the same.”
kai couldn’t help but to smile, and then gave taehyun a forehead kiss.
“i’ve been in love with you for a long time actually.”
“really? why didn’t you say anything?”
“and risk losing my best friend? no way in hell.”
“you’re not losing me, ever.”
“i guess that’s why everybody thinks we’re a couple.”
“damn, i wanted to make it more romantic. sorry for confessing so suddenly.”
“you don’t need to do anything. everything and anything you do, i’ll accept it.”
“i’m glad to have you in my life.” kai says and kisses taehyun’s nose.
“i’m glad to have you in my life too, kai.” taehyun says and hugs kai.
Please just say you love me
We are more than friends, so hold me
I don't need no lie
You're always in my heart, you know