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After a long week of schedules, they are all finally back at the dorm. The group have been given an incredible total of three days to rest and do whatever they like. In a very short conversation on the way home, they vaguely plan their first "off work" activity.
Ordering various dishes from different restaurants, getting some drinks and dessert from the convenience store, gathering in the living room… It’s all part of the usual get-together they try to make happen as often as humanly possible; their go-to way to unwind and transition into their vacation.
“So, tell me.” Woobin starts, sitting down on the floor right between Allen and Minhee. “How many times are you going to do this to me? I mean, why me, too? Isn’t it always me?” He looks around incredulously, trying to find validation from the members. Predictably, nobody bothers to look at him. Only Serim is staring with a blank expression.
They are all seated around the table, which is crowded with take-out boxes and bottles of soda, juice, and even some beer. Each member has a somewhat different taste when it comes to ordering, so the smells of hangover soup, fried chicken, and spicy noodles all mix and replace the scent of the freshly applied shampoos and body lotions that linger after their shower relay.
“Do you have some sort of revenge plan?” Woobin continues, scooping some stew onto his bowl. He raises his eyebrows at Jungmo and Wonjin, who are sitting together right across from him, as if prompting them to answer.
“First of all, I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Wonjin offers, rather focused on topping his spoonful of rice with a piece of pork. “But could you pass me the salt?”
Multiple choked up laughs make Woobin stare in disbelief, but he does as asked. Wonjin nods and mutters a satisfied ‘thank you’ with his mouth already full.
“I mean about the heart you two did on the red carpet. Making me look like a fool like that…”
“Hyung, if you feel like a fool because of that, you might just be a fool.” Wonjin replies while frowning comically, gesturing with his chopsticks. Woobin stares for a few seconds then digs back into his plate.
“I have nothing to say to that.” He easily and swiftly accepts defeat.
“But it is true that you are doing this type of thing very often.” Taeyoung adds with a mischievous smile, head turned in the general direction of Wonjin and Jungmo.
“So?” Wonjin replies flippantly. “I don’t know what you mean.”
Taeyoung is a whole other type of opponent. While Woobin does love to mess around, he is quickly shut down and won’t really pry into risky topics. The younger ones, however, are really ruthless. They will quickly figure out what’s off, cross-examine with what the fans are saying, and poke fun until the victim is left embarrassed.
Taeyoung’s grin grows while looking Wonjin right in the eye, obviously excited at the premise of teasing him.
“How long has it been?” Woobin asks directly, cutting into the tension of the stare down. He’s casually chewing on some noodles, acting as if the question wasn’t a big deal.
“How long has what been?” Jungmo finally chimes in, taking the baton from Wonjin.
“How long have you been dating?”
Wonjin’s head immediately whips around to Woobin.
“What are you saying?” He interjects, chuckling dryly at the end. Jungmo glances at him momentarily, scanning his reaction, then turns back to his friend.
“I’m asking how long it’s been.” Maybe they had underestimated Woobin’s commitment to the bit.
“Stop talking nonsense, seriously.” Wonjin sighs, exasperated.
At this point, Jungmo steps back mentally to assess the situation. Are the rest really expecting to get an answer? Are they just playing around? There’s an obvious special bond between them two, are they using this to bother them? Do they already know? What should he say in response?
“Right, I’ve been meaning to ask this too.” Taeyoung ignores the reply, leaning forward on the table and beaming with happiness. “So, when did you start?” He turns to Jungmo instead, an easier prey to corner.
“Ah seriously, it’s not like that!” He deflects, putting his hands up and shaking them, unable to fully hide his tiny smile. Despite his inner dilemma, he can’t help but have fun with the members even when he’s the one getting targeted.
“Then what was the need to do that right in front of Woobin hyung? I mean, he was standing right in the middle of you guys, you could’ve just made a heart with him.” Seongmin's question is laced with fake sympathy, the glint to his eye revealing that he’s just planning to make matters worse.
“Have you guys never made a heart with another member? Allen hyung, didn’t you recently make a heart with Serim hyung in the previous event? So does that mean you two are dating?” Wonjin’s accusation is not even dignified with an answer. All the two elders can do is stare pitifully, knowing nobody is buying the distraction.
“I did think it was kind of overboard.” Minhee confesses while nodding, only to receive a sharp look from Hyeongjun, who had been quietly eating.
“That’s what I’m saying! It’s too random!” Taeyoung insists, picking up a piece of meat from the center of the table.
The fact that the members are purposefully framing it as a joke makes it incredibly more difficult for Jungmo. It’d be weird for them to be completely clueless, given how much time he and Wonjin spend together. But correctly guessing that they're in a serious relationship, however, is very different from assuming one of them has a silly crush on the other.
He feels like he’s sweating. Out of all the times the members have insinuated they ‘know’, it has never been this direct.
“That’s what I’m saying, Jungmo-yah.” Woobin re-enters the discussion, putting emphasis on his friend’s name. “So how long?”
The line between being sincere and fake-honest for comedic effect is very, very thin in the CRAVITY dorms. Most of the time, the real intention is already known, or easily inferable. They know each other enough for that.
“I told you we’re not dating?” Jungmo blurts out, with a suddenly serious tone. As if the entire conversation was completely ridiculous from the beginning.
Taeyoung falls back on his cushion with a satisfied smile. He’s happy he has been able to push some buttons, but a follow-up joke is discarded after he notices how Wonjin doesn’t react at all. He figures that’s enough for the day, and with a discreet glance to his side, it appears Seongmin catches onto it too.
The youngest members don’t think too deeply into it, but Jungmo does.
When members tease more than one person, they would both team up and defend themselves. Wonjin should’ve gone off what Jungmo said, a snarky remark, an unrelated comment that derails the conversation. This time, he’s just looking at the take-out boxes in silence, maybe just pondering what to eat next. But there’s a hint of something unusual in his expression.
As if Hyeongjun could see the gears in Jungmo’s head turning, he sighs and spots Woobin grabbing another piece of chicken.
“Hey! Why are you taking my food?!” He shouts, acting offended, and it seems like it sort of convinces the others. Everybody turns their head towards the noise except Wonjin, who is looking down at his bowl, and Jungmo, who is looking at Wonjin.
“I mean, it was just there…” Woobin tries to defend himself.
“Just because it’s there does it mean it’s yours? It’s clearly pointing to me!” Hyeongjun insists, frowning.
“Here, here, have this one.” Minhee tries to diffuse the situation, but gets immediately rejected. He automatically understands that’s not the point of the commotion.
“I mean, this isn’t about the chicken!” Hyeongjun continues, clearly piling on Woobin. He dramatically explains how he should be mindful of what parts of the take-out fried chicken are his based on proximity.
Most of the group is now chiming in with their own opinions, all against the older. ‘To be fair, it was closer to him…’, ‘He’s right, Woobin, you were a bit…’, and so on. It’s so easy to get the members to gang up on the resident chef.
While the chatter continues, Jungmo observes Wonjin mix up the remaining rice. He occasionally looks up and listens to a few words of the conversation, without joining in. Jungmo purses his lips and puts his chopsticks down.
After eating the last spoonful, Wonjin throws himself back and chews quietly.
Thanks to Hyeongjun, everybody is now in a heated debate over what order belongs to who. Jungmo gets the opportunity to place his hand right next to Wonjin’s, which is flat on the floor, supporting his weight. He lightly brushes his fingers against the other’s, as if just trying to signal that he’s there. He doesn’t get a reaction, but he doesn’t expect one.
Sometimes Wonjin is just tired. Everybody knows him as the mood maker, the loud introvert; but they also know that on occasion he is so physically tired that not even jokes or comebacks will come out. And that’s fine.
Just like when Seongmin jokingly raised his voice after Wonjin’s comment that one time, only for him to nod at it and fall silent for the rest of the night. The youngest had been worried sick, even going to the lengths of calling other members for advice. But hours after he had gotten some sleep, Wonjin was just as deliberately annoying as always.
They’ve all grown accustomed to it, and therefore avoid any unnecessary worry or awkwardness after a hard day. They know he will be fine tomorrow morning.
However, Jungmo wants him to be fine right now.
“It’s always Woobin hyung who steals the last bit though. The other night, he also finished some potato snacks on his own.” Minhee voices out, as if he’s revealing some prime information. “Right, Wonjin hyung?” He attempts to cautiously invite him back into the conversation.
“Yeah, he finished the bag that I bought.” Wonjin adds flatly.
“That’s what I was telling you, he’s the real thief!”
“I mean, it was just there! How am I supposed to know…” The discussion continues, and Jungmo chooses to draw his eyes away from the younger. Mindful of how his gaze could put pressure on Wonjin, he decides he can properly apologize a bit later instead.
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The rest of the night goes on normally: the ‘fight’ fizzles out after everybody has gotten enough Woobin disses in, so they start telling stories about the multiple trips they had gone on. Allen is passionately narrating how he found a really cute penguin plushie that looked like Queenie in the duty free store when Jungmo spots Wonjin eyeing the leftover food on the table, specifically the last piece of chicken.
If there’s something that he can do for him, it’s this. Fully knowing the younger wouldn’t dare do this on his own, he scans the room. Everybody is paying attention to Allen’s tale, bodies and heads turned in his direction.
So he swallows, then reaches for the remaining thigh. After successfully grabbing it in the sneakiest manner possible, he places it on top of Wonjin’s rice bowl, looking at him for a second to say ‘Eat’ very quietly.
Luckily for them, it seems like nobody pays any mind to the gesture, whether it is out of habit or because they didn’t see it.
Wonjin seems to figure out that Jungmo saw him check out the leftovers, because he doesn’t reject it or push it away. He ignores it at first, but his eyes keep falling on the chicken while trying to focus on Allen. After a minute or two, he picks up the lukewarm thigh and bites onto it hesitantly.
Jungmo fights back a satisfied smile. He can tune into whatever the rest were discussing with a bit of peace of mind.
“Honestly, isn’t Tommy the cutest one?” Seongmin asks, genuinely flabbergasted. It appears CCREW were at the center of discussion, yet again.
“Not by a lot. It just looks weird.” Woobin argues.
“Hyung, Wooka isn’t exactly the most adorable.” Taeyoung laughs, drawing a shocked expression from the older. Seongmin giggles and softly pushes him in amusement. Woobin looks at him weirdly.
“You can’t beat Queenie.” Allen counter-points with confidence.
This continues for a good 10 minutes, with the youngest members joining forces again, this time to take Minhee down for saying Gangmong is ‘actually the better looking one’. Jungmo doesn’t miss when Wonjin chuckles at a specifically heartfelt remark by Woobin, or when he joins in with a joke about Yong-t. Taeyoung seems ready to retaliate, but Minhee’s vague hand gesture and head shake makes him reconsider.
“Right, so how do we decide who’s cleaning this? Let’s do it quickly.” Hyeongjun claps to get attention from the rest.
“Let’s just do rock paper scissors?” Serim proposes.
After a few inconclusive rounds, it’s decided that Seongmin and Allen will throw away the trash, Jungmo and Wonjin will wash the dishes, and the rest of them get to walk away unscathed.
Wonjin sighs at the result, dropping back and laying down on the floor to enjoy the last moments of calm before getting his hands dirty. Jungmo stays still, but keeps an eye on the other.
He’s not excited about touching soggy noodles in the sink, or wiping the endless counters, but at least he gets to have some alone time with Wonjin and correct his mistakes. He would’ve probably hovered around the kitchen if he also hadn’t played paper anyway.
The rest of the members seem to take pity on them and get up quickly, initiating unrelated chatter amongst themselves as they leave. Minhee pats Jungmo’s shoulder a couple of times before fleeing out of the living room.
“We’ll go to the convenience store after putting this away! We’ll be right back!” Allen informs the entire dorm before he and Seongmin step out of the apartment with a couple of huge trash bags.
After the thunder of the door closing woke him up, Wonjin gets up sluggishly and stacks a few dirty plates on the sink, dragging them like they weigh a hundred kilos each. Cleaning up for nine very hungry men is not an easy, fun, or short task. At least there is some pork and rice they can just leave in the original packaging.
Jungmo sneaks a couple of texts to Allen before pushing his phone back into his pocket, and walks up to Wonjin’s side. He stands there for a few seconds checking out his surroundings.
Rather than bothering Wonjin while working and slowing themselves down, he prefers to start by doing his part. Since the younger is already rinsing the plates, he goes back and crouches to grab as many utensils and glasses as he can. He carefully sets them down on the counter, repeating the process until everything is cleared out.
Wonjin looks quite tired, Jungmo notes, just like the rest of them. His eyelids are resting a bit lower than usual, and his actions are slower than some hours ago, when he was scooping up soup in what seemed like milliseconds. The corners of his mouth twist lightly in a pout.
“I’ll do it.” Jungmo takes a tiny step into Wonjin’s direction, taking the lead to dry off the excess water. The younger doesn’t respond, but he passes him each plate after he’s done washing it.
Soon enough, and as they fall into a rhythm, Jungmo becomes immersed in his worries. He thinks about how hurtful it must be to hear those words from the person you’re dating.
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Right as they are wrapping up the washing, Jungmo gets out of his head and turns to Wonjin, forgetting to put the last pile of plates in its place.
“Wonjin-ah, are you okay?” He finally asks, after hours of wondering by himself.
The younger just nods, drying off the sink with a towel. Jungmo is aware he wouldn’t want to articulate further.
“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have said that.” He adds as he brings a hand up to Wonjin’s head, softly caressing his hair. He leans onto him just enough for better eye contact.
“It’s okay.”
“Are you sure?” Jungmo’s seriousness slowly creeps up on his soft tone, determined to get to his real feelings behind the layer of exhaustion.
“Yeah, I’m really okay.” Wonjin replies, and Jungmo feels a bit of relief. All the pending hours of sleep seem to weigh him down enough, making it difficult for the younger to act and fake his response.
But he stays staring at him, unable to fully let go of his concern.
Wonjin looks at him, then looks behind them, then at him again.
“Hyung, aren’t you going to put the leftovers somewhere else?” He points with his chin at the boxes that are stacked on the floor, next to the table.
“Ah!” Jungmo hurries over and places the few closed containers in the fridge, earning a small huff from the other. He double checks the entire kitchen to make sure everything has been taken care of. A few buzzes come from his pocket, but he ignores them.
It must be only around 1 AM, because he can still hear the loud laughs and exclamations from the members in some other room. They are playing some video game all together, he thinks, staring at the hallway after a particularly high-pitched creak that sounds like Taeyoung. The background noise feels comforting, like an embrace.
Wonjin is finally done. All the little menial tasks that make up the whole ‘cleaning up’ job have been finished, and quite thoroughly. With an inner sense of accomplishment, he throws the wash cloth onto the soap dish, then turns around to lean on the counter with his phone in hand.
Any other person would rightfully run away to their room as soon as they’re done with the dishes. And many would have already been mentally laid on bed during the whole time. But as already known by the members, Wonjin doesn’t like to use his room on his own. So he stays in the kitchen, the living room, or even invades someone else’s space, even when feeling down.
While scrolling down on the timeline, Wonjin can tell a slightly taller shadow comes back to his side, like he’s a magnet. The dim, orange lamp light would make it difficult to recognize who it is, if it wasn’t obvious. By the context. By the height. Or by the smell. Or the voice that calls out for him, dripping in tenderness.
“Are we all finished?” Jungmo says softly, more as an excuse to start a conversation than as a question.
“Yeah.” Wonjin hums, keeping his eyes on the screen. The blue light coming from it is mostly swallowed by stronger yellows, but it creates a weak contrast on the tip of his nose and lips. His dark hair is all flat and down, bangs covering a bit of his eyes when his head is tilted. Post-shower Wonjin always looks something like this, missing the glasses. Jungmo smiles to himself faintly, taking a few seconds to admire his view. He feels a bit more at ease with Wonjin’s reactions after their brief talk.
He slowly snakes an arm around the younger’s waist, pulling himself into a side-hug to face the same direction. Dropping the side of his head on Wonjin’s shoulder, he hopes to catch whatever Tiktok is playing on the phone. He would watch paint dry if it means he gets to be so close.
He almost tunes out, too distracted by Wonjin’s soft collar bone skin meeting his cheek. His body feels like it can finally untense: it’s slowly melting, boneless. All his worries escape in a deep sigh.
They stay like this until Wonjin’s For You page turns repetitive, which is oddly quick. A few more scrolls on other apps and he decides to lock the phone, calling it a day screen-time wise. Jungmo picks his head up and they look at each other for a few beats.
“You seem tired.” Jungmo slides off the side-hug and takes a small step back. “Do you want to go rest in my room?” He takes Wonjin’s hand onto his own, interlacing their fingers. He can feel the warmth of the touch spreading up his wrist, through his arm, until it reaches his chest.
“Yeah, I’d like that.” Wonjin nods, a bit too drowsy to feel embarrassed.
They stop in their tracks when they hear keys unlocking the main door, right next to the kitchen.
“We’re back!” Seongmin announces cheerfully while passing the couple, as if he had just gotten off work. Allen greets them with a cute ‘Hi~’, putting down some plastic bags on the counter. After a quick wave, Wonjin pulls Jungmo’s hand in the direction of the room, but the older resists.
“Ah, go first, I’ll help Allen-hyung put away the groceries.” Jungmo lets go of the hold, but stalls until he sees Wonjin nod and walk away. Once he sees the other enter his room, he quickly turns back, and begins taking out packs of noodles to put them into the cupboards.
____________________________________________________________
Thanks to his decision to not turn on any music, Wonjin hears the careful creak of the door when Jungmo opens it, barely minutes later. He’s carrying one of the plastic bags Allen brought, grinning shyly. It’s clearly emptier than before.
“I thought we could have this a bit later.” Jungmo holds it up.
Wonjin can see through the thin material, quickly noticing colors he would recognize in the split of a second. His favorite convenience store bread.
“Thank you.” He says simply while making eye contact. Jungmo’s lips flatten in a content, beluga-like smile as a response.
____________________________________________________________
“Do you want the rest to know?” Jungmo’s abrupt question interrupts the pleasant silence. Wonjin locks his phone, forgetting about the schedule he wanted to check in a hurry.
The younger’s back is flush with Jungmo’s chest, tangled together in a backhug. After their quick snack, they had lazily climbed on top of the bed, making sure to leave the desk lamp on at full intensity in order not to fall asleep just yet.
“Mmm…” Wonjin ponders out loud. “It’s not that I don’t. I just don’t know how to go about it.”
Jungmo hums in agreement, bringing the other a bit closer. Both of his arms are embracing Wonjin’s waist, with his hands deliberately placed on his stomach. A deep sense of comfort sinks onto him whenever he manages to cling around his boyfriend like this.
“I really didn’t mean to say that.” Jungmo mutters. “I wasn’t sure if you’d be okay telling the others.”
Wonjin turns to face the older, staying within his arms.
“It’s okay, idiot, I know.” He replies with a small smirk, reaching for Jungmo’s face. He slots his palm perfectly right on top of his cheekbone.
“Still, idiot is a bit…” The complaint comes out slurred because of his over-the-top pout.
The younger tsks and rolls his eyes at the same time, pretending to be annoyed. Before Jungmo can double down on his sulkiness, Wonjin stretches himself to reach the other’s lips, kissing him gently. The way his fingers are laid out across Jungmo’s jaw is deliberate, perfectly calculated for his thumb to caress right under his lower eyelid. And to him it’s relaxing, like a spell.
When they pull away, he doesn’t complain. He’s left smiling shyly, the top of his ears tinted with blush. Wonjin lays his head back on the pillow, so Jungmo tightens his grip on his waist instead.
“So, I don’t really mind. In my opinion, at least Hyeongjun knows it already.” Wonjin starts puzzling it all together, weirdly excited, as if it’s some kind of guessing game. “Serim hyung… I’m pretty sure he knows too.”
“If Hyeongjun knows then we’re doomed!” Jungmo laughs in shock at the younger’s opinion.
“No, no, he’s actually keeping quiet this time, I can tell. It’s Taeyoung I’m concerned about. Taeyoung is… A scary person.”
“Not scarier than you though.” Jungmo adds playfully.
“...What does this mean?” The question is a few beats late on purpose. Their usual bickering rhythm is unpredictable, but they both match it without fail.
“I’m telling you you wouldn’t be able to keep this kind of secret for long.”
“What are you talking about, just how trustworthy am I!” The younger chuckles in his response, as if he was appealing.
“Ham Wonjin…” Jungmo clicks his tongue and shakes his head dramatically, right on brand.
Their fight continues with exaggerated accusations and light shovings, keeping them all over each other during the entire time. As the night progresses, and the voices of the other members start to simmer down, they naturally follow. With the light now turned off, they end up sickeningly close, murmuring barely audible quips before falling asleep.