Archive of Our Own

Dongmin has a problem. The problem is his best friend, Myung Jaehyun. 

The thing is, Myung Jaehyun is the easiest person in the world to love. It’s like he was made to be adored and admired. He was something precious, it was inevitable that Dongmin had been pulled into his orbit. Dongmin was a mere satellite in Jaehyun’s solar system. Dongmin doesn’t think there's ever been a time he wasn't in love with Jaehyun.

“Dongminnie, are you even listening?” Jaehyun complains, leaning too close to Dongmin’s face. His heart rate picks up, but Dongmin is an expert in appearing calm and collected around Jaehyun at this point. 

“No, sorry. Say it again?” Dongmin replies, having missed the tail end of Jaehyun’s rant. He pouts, and Dongmin rolls his eyes instead of kissing the pout off of Jaehyun’s lips like he wants to. Dongmin should receive an award in self control. Jaehyun slams his fist down on the small round table of the outdoor table they're sitting at, and Dongmin thinks he may have missed something important in Jaehyun’s babbling.

“I said, Donghyun-ssi and Sanghyeo-ssi are like, attached at the hip lately! I don’t know what I'm supposed to do!” Jaehyun whines. Right. Jaehyun’s current romantic conquests. Dongmin’s favorite topic.

“How about nothing? If they're getting cozy I'm sure you've lost your chance.” Dongmin says, trying to camouflage his irritation with concern. He is concerned, he can't even remember which one of the two guys Jaehyun is interested in. Jaehyun tends to jump from crush to crush, and Dongmin isn’t looking forward to the fallout of him flirting with a guy in a relationship. 

“But Dongminnie, I need him!” Jaehyun whines again, a pathetic sound that should be annoying. Dongmin pretends it is, but he’s always found Jaehyun’s antics cute instead of annoying. 

“Hyung, I assure you, you do not. It's just another fleeting crush, you'll get over it and move on. Remember Sungho-ssi?” Dongmin grabs a fry from the basket in the middle of their tiny table. Most of the fries have been eaten by Dongmin at this point, Jaehyun too busy ranting. Jaehyun hasn't even touched his drink. He must be very worried. 

“Of course I remember Sungho-ssi,” Jaehyun says with a shudder, finally taking a sip of his drink. “We don’t speak of that. I'll never live that down.”

Dongmin tries to hide a smirk behind the glass of his margarita. Sungho is the only one of Jaehyun’s past crushes that Dongmin tolerates. Well, actually, Dongmin quite likes Sungho. He’s just Jaehyun’s type; tall, long hair, pretty boy. He was also unattainable. Sungho, much to Dongmin’s delight, was apparently asexual and aromantic. Jaehyun made a big fuss, coming onto him at a party after pining for a few weeks. Dongmin watched from afar, because no matter how badly he’d had rather been at home in his bed drinking his feelings for Jaehyun away, he didn't want to let Jaehyun go to a party alone. He watched as Sungho made an apologetic face, patted Jaehyun on the shoulder, and let him down gently. Dongmin almost cheered when Jaehyun came back to tell him what happened. Needless to say, Dongmin had to carry a very drunk Jaehyun home that night, crashing on his couch after getting him in bed.

“Whatever, the point still stands. If they're seeing each other, that's bad news for you. Just move on.” 

Jaehyun thuds his head down onto the table, all drama, and Dongmin sighs. 

“Hyu-”

Suddenly Jaehyun’s head snaps up. He’s got a pleading look in his eyes that only means that he’s going to ask something impossible from Dongmin. 

“Donghyun-ssi is in your art history class, right?” Jaehyun says, reaching across the table to grab Dongmin’s hand. He ignores the way the action makes his stomach turn. 

“Yeah?” Dongmin replies. Donghyun sits a few seats away from Dongmin in the back row. They've never spoken, and he didn't know Jaehyun knew they had a class together. He should have suspected though, Jaehyun has ways of finding out things.

“This is great!” Jaehyun says, shaking Dongmin’s hand. Jaehyun’s barely touched margarita wobbles precariously on the table with the force of his shaking.

“Hyung, you're gonna drop the glass.” 

Jaehyun stops shaking, but continues his point. 

“You can talk to Donghyun-ssi, ask him if he’s seeing Sanghyeok-ssi seriously!” Jaehyun’s eyes shimmer as he asks for the favor, squeezing Dongmin’s hand now. Dongmin wishes he could pull away, tell Jaehyun no, and to stop wasting his time with losers who won't, can't, love him like Dongmin does. Dongmin’s wishes rarely ever come true, though, so he settles for groaning. 

“Oh, dude, seriously? You want me to be the weirdo who just asks random dudes who theyre fucking? No way.” Dongmin argues. It's all for show, he’d do anything Jaehyun asked. 

“Come on! Please? Just figure out what's going on! Please please please?” Jaehyun pleads, bringing his hands together in front of him and everything. 

“Jaehyun…” 

Jaehyun pouts, bats his eyelashes and tilts his head just so. It's practed, tried and true; his begging face. If he were a dog, his ears would be dropping sadly, and he'd be whimpering. Dongmin has never stood a chance against it, and Jaehyun knows he can abuse the power. 

“Oh my god. Fine! But, if he is involved, you'll back off?”

Jaehyun perks up immediately, his metaphorical tail wagging.

“Yes! Of course! Thank you so much Dongminnie!” Jaehyun says, reaching for Dongmin’s hand again and kissing it a thousand times. Dongmin is grateful Jaehyun isn't looking at his face. He can feel the blush flare into his cheeks. 

Dongmin watches as Donghyun walks into the room. He does his usual; walks over to the desk a few seats away from Dongmin, puts his book bag on the table, takes out his laptop, and sits. He takes his notes on his laptop, unlike Dongmin who needs to physically write his notes in order to remember them. Dongmin must be staring too hard, because Donghyun looks at him for what Dongmin is sure is the first time since they started this class. Fuck. 

Dongmin tries to turn away quickly, but he’s already been caught. He thinks maybe Donghyun will let it go, but then he sees movement beside him, and now Donghyun is sitting directly next to him. 

“What are you staring at?” Donghyun asks. Despite his word choice, he doesnt sound hostile. Just a bit amused. The smirk on his face confirms that. Dongmin sighs.

“Sorry. I've got a bit of a staring problem.” A lie. Well, he usually only stares at Jaehyun, so maybe it's not an entire lie. Donghyun laughs.

“Sure. I can believe that. Anything in particular catch your eye?” Donghyun teases. Dongmin isn't sure if he’s flirting or making fun of him. He hopes he’s not flirting. How awkward would that be?

“Uh, no. Just a staring problem.” 

Donghyun nods, but he looks like he doesn't believe him. He doesn't say anything more, and turns back to his laptop, turning it on. Dongmin tries to think of a way to find an answer to Jaehyun’s question without being weird. 

“Are you and Sanghyeok-ssi dating?” Dongmin blurts. Well, that's definitely not right. Donghyun looks shocked for only a second, then his face twists up into a knowing smirk. This is absolutely not what he wanted to happen. 

“Are you usually this forward?” He asks, entirely too smug for his liking. Jaehyun shouldn't be interested in such a conceited bastard. 

“I’m asking for a friend. Don’t be weird.” Dongmin finds himself saying. That doesn't sound suspicious at all. 

“Which friend? I didn't think you had many of those.”

Oh. Donghyun knows who he is then. Huh.

“I can’t tell you that.”

“So then it's you?”

“No!”

Donghyun looks Dongmin in his face, as if he’s trying to determine if Donghyun is telling the truth. He must see something in Dongmin’s face that gives him an answer, because he smiles. 

“Yes. I’m dating Sanghyeok. Tell your friend I'm sorry.” 

Dongmin’s lips twitch as he tries to keep his expression neutral. He’s not successful, because Donghyun notices and goes to make a comment, but their professor clears their throat to start class. Dongmin sighs in relief. At least now Jaehyun can move on from Donghyun. 

At the end of class, Dongmin goes to leave, but Donghyun grabs his arm. Dongmin turns towards him, confused. 

“It’s that guy with the puppy dog eyes, right?” He asks. Dongmin’s blood runs a bit cold. 

“Why do you ask?”

“You like him, don’t you? I see you guys together all the time. You follow him around all pathetically and stuff.”

Dongmin can feel the furious blush crawl up his body. This isn't exactly the first time he’s been told his crush was obvious because of his actions, but never this bluntly. Dognmin can’t find a response that won’t make the situation more embarrassing, so he keeps his mouth shut.

“I think you should go for it. He looks at you with these dreamy eyes when you’re not looking.” Donghyun says. The thought makes Dongmin’s heart rate speed up, but he knows Jaehyun looks at everyone like that. 

“Whatever, dude.” Dongmin says, crossing his arms over his chest. Donghyun’s eyes seem to pierce through his soul in that moment, and all the cocky bravado from earlier melts away, replaced with a concerned expression. It makes Dongmin squirm.

“If you ever wanna talk about it, I hang out near the dance building all the time.” 

Dongmin wants to scoff, but the guy seems so serious and genuine that he just nods. Donghyun smiles, and turns towards the door, Sanghyeok waiting for him there. Dongmin watches with an envious heart as Donghyun throws his arm over Sanghyeok’s shoulders and pulls him in close, kissing the top of his head. 

Dongmin breaks the news over lunch, and Jaehyun doesn’t take it well. 

“Like, he kissed him? Like, on the lips?” Jaehyun asks. Dongmin has to refrain from screaming. 

“That literally doesn't matter, he said he and Sanghyeok-ssi are dating. Missed your chance, move on.” Dongmin snaps. Jaehyun blinks at Dongmin in surprise. Dongmin kicks himself mentally for not being able to keep his emotions in check. 

“Oh. Right. Sorry.” Jaehyun says, reaching for his water and taking a long sip, avoiding Dongmin’s gaze. Dongmin doesn't let his actual frustration show very often, but he always feels bad when he does. Jaehyun doesn't even understand why, he just assumes he’s being annoying. Dongmin has never felt he was annoying, it’s just hard to pretend to be normal about anything involving Jaehyun.

“Just, find someone who will give you the time of day. You deserve that much.” Dongmin says, avoiding eye contact. 

“I know. I'm sorry, I know you just care a lot.” Jaehyun says, reaching for Dongmin’s hand across the table. Dongmin still can’t meet his gaze, squeezes his hand. 

“You have no idea.” He mutters to himself. Jaehyun doesn't hear him. 

Dongmin finds himself at the dance building three days later, looking for Donghyun. Doesn't think it would be so easy to find him, but he’s currently pushing Sanghyeok against the wall next to a practice room and attempting to eat his face. So. 

“Ahem.” Dongmin clears his throat awkwardly. They both startle, Sanghyeok’s face immediately turning bright red upon being caught. Donghyun looks apologetic for all of two seconds before he recognizes Dongmin. He smiles cheekily, and turns back to Sanghyeok, releasing him from his position on the wall. 

“It’s just Dongmin-ah. He’s cool.” Donghyun says to his boyfriend, who seems to relax a bit at that. He’s still bright red, but he now smiles shyly at Dongmin. He says something quietly to Donghyun before bowing slightly at Dongmin and slipping into the room next to them. 

“Had to come see for yourself, huh?” Donghyun jokes, and Dongmin rolls his eyes. 

“Kidding. Everything okay?” He says, waving Dongmin over to follow him. Dongmin does, and considers his question. Decidedly, everything is not okay. They haven't been for as long as Dongmin can remember, but it's gotten worse lately. 

“No, they aren’t.” Dongmin says once they reach the back door. Donghyun hums, and pushes the door open. There's a small sitting area, and Dongmin is happy it’s empty.

“I kind of got the impression last time we talked, that you don't want to make a move on the guy. What's the story?” Donghyun asks, plopping down on a bench. Dongmin sits next to him, a bit stiff.

“There isn't a story, really. I met Jaehyun-hyung as a kid, and I-” Dongmin hesitates, “I’ve felt this way forever.”

Donghyun’s face stays neutral, but he nods.

“I can’t tell him and ruin our friendship. It’s too messy. There's been times over the years that I thought maybe the way I felt wasn't one sided, that maybe Hyung liked me too. He always ended up liking someone new before I got the chance to say something. I think I was just making it up, and I really can’t take the chance.”

Dongmin pauses, but now that he’s started, he can't stop all of the feelings snow balling out of him.

“And it’s so hard, because he falls for all the wrong people, like I'm not right there. Watching him get his heart broken time and time again is so infuriating. I’m not mad at him , but it’s making me so angry. I keep blowing up at him, and he doesn’t deserve that.” 

Donghyun looks at him, and finally lets the sympathy he feels show on his face. Dongmin hates that it makes him feel better. 

“Sounds complicated. Have you tried dating other people? Maybe the feelings linger because you're too focused on him.” Donghyun offers helpfully. Dongmin laughs, but nothing is funny. 

“I've tried a few times, no one compares to him. Besides, Jaehyun has never liked any of my past partners, and they didn’t like him.” 

Donghyun makes a face at that, but it’s gone before Dongmin can analyze it. Donghyun nods, thinking for a bit. 

“Do you want advice, or do you just want someone to listen?” Donghyun asks. Dongmin is a bit shocked by the question, and how helpful it is. What a strange guy.

“I think I need advice at this point.” Dongmin says. “I can’t keep hurting Jaehyun. I can’t keep hurting myself.”

Donghyun smiles, and Dongmin feels warm, the same way he feels when he gets to see his brother Woonhak on the weekends. Maybe he should thank Jaehyun for making him talk to Donghyun.

“Okay. I’m thinking of something, but you have to give it a real try before you dismiss it.” 

Dongmin doesn't love the way that sounds, but he figures he’s running out of options. 

“Okay. Shoot.”

“I think you, maybe, need more friends. Following Jaehyun around like a puppy all the time isn’t going to do you any favors. Besides, Jaehyun has a bunch of other friends to keep him company.” Donghyun looks a bit nervous suggesting his idea. Dongmin wants to immediately rebut, but thinks about it. Dongmin does follow Jaehyun around. A lot. Dongmin doesn't talk to anyone that Jaehyun isn't already close with, and being around him 24/7 is starting to make him crazy. Maybe more friends isn’t a bad idea. He sighs.

“What is your plan?”

Donghyun smiles, relief washing over him. His eyes crinkle up cutely into crescent, and Dongmin starts to feel a bit of cute aggression. 

“Hang out with me and my friends!” He says, shaking his hands in a ‘tada!’ kind of gesture. Dongmin scoffs with a smirk.

“And who are your friends?” Dongmin asks, knowing he’ll probably agree no matter who he says. 

“Well, I mainly hang out with Sanghyeok-hyung, but our other friend is really cool too. Maybe you know him, Park Sungho?”

Dongmin’s eyes widened at the mention of the man. Wouldn’t it be kind of weird to hang out with a guy who once rejected his best friend? 

“Yeah, I know him. Jaehyun used to have a crush on him.”

Donghyun laughs.

“Really? Does Jaehyun have a track record of crushing on whole friend groups? Next he’ll like Sanghyeok-hyung.” As soon as he says it, his face twists into something foul. “Tell him to stay away from Sanghyeok-hyung.”

Dongmin thinks he looks a bit like an angry baby with his face all twisted up like that.

“Don’t worry. Jaehyun is a serial romantic, but not a homewrecker.”

Donghyun relaxes a bit, but still looks a little tense at the prospect of Jaehyun liking his boyfriend. 

“So. What do you say? Maybe you can have lunch with us tomorrow?” Donghyun asks. Dongmin usually eats lunch with Jaehyun, and if Jaehyun has other plans he just eats alone. Maybe it would be nice to have variety. 

“Sure.”

Dongmin isn’t sure what to expect when he tells Jaehyun about his lunch plans, but his reaction makes Dongmin feel weird.

“Oh! That's so exciting! I’m glad you're making new friends!” Jaehyun says, clapping his hands together across the table. 

“Shush, we are in the library!” Dongmin hisses a whisper, looking around at the people staring at them. Jaehyun blushes, not realizing he was being a bit loud. Dongmin loves when Jaehyun gets flustered, the pink on his cheeks always looks so cute. Gross.

“Sorry. Who are you having lunch with?” Jaehyun asks with shining eyes. Dongmin gulps down his nerves before he speaks. 

“Donghyun. After I talked to him in class, he invited me to hang out with him and his friends.”

Jaehyun’s face goes neutral, and Dongmin hates it when Jaehyun does that. Jaehyun has this habit of hiding his feelings when he thinks Dongmin won't approve of them. He thinks it's silly Jaehyun would ever think Dongmin would disapprove of his emotions.  He watches as Jaehyun puts on a smile that could fool about anyone but Dongmin, and Dongmin has no idea what Jaehyun is thinking. 

“Oh! That sounds like fun! I have to speak with Gunwookie and Matthew-hyung tomorrow anyway.” Jaehyun says, a bit too chipper. Dongmin tries to not let it show that he can tell Jaehyun’s reaction is fake. Jaehyun hates to make Dongmin worried.

“Oh that's great. Tell them I said hi!” Dongmin says, turning his attention back to his half eaten sandwich. 

Dongmin thinks Donghyun must be some kind of freaky alien. Or a superhero. That's the only explanation for him appearing out of thin air as he’s leaving his Music Theory class. 

“Fuck! Don’t do that!” Dongmin chastises, pushing Donghyun’s shoulder as he laughs. 

“I’m not sorry, you look like a cat when you're scared.” He says in between his giggles. Dongmin rolls his eyes, but can’t help but feel fond at the way Donghyun acts around him. Dongmin hasn’t had anyone seek him out to be friends since he met Jaehyun at the park when they were four. It makes him feel seen. Most people just see him as an extension of Jaehyun. 

“Whatever. Why are you here?” Dongmin says, following Donghyun as he skips down the hall. 

“To get you so you didn't go to the food hall. We don’t eat there.” Donghyun calls over his shoulder. Dongmin has to pick up the pace to keep up.

“Really? Why?”

Donghyun slows down so Dongmin doesn’t have to hustle so fast. 

“Sanghyeok-hyung says it’s too loud in there.”

Dongmin agrees. He eats there with Jaehyun most days, because Jaehyun likes to run into his friends, but Dongmin hates how crowded it gets. He doesn’t tell Jaehyun how much it bothers him most times, and when he’s really tired he just bribes Jaehyun with the promise to pay for off-campus food to get a break.

“Oh.” Is all he’s able to say. Donghyun stops skipping entirely, looking and Dongmin with a curious look. Dongmin avoids his eyes, and Donghyun doesn’t say whatever he’s thinking. 

Donghyun leads them to a small cafe just off of campus that he used to visit with Jaehyun. They both like it a lot, but stopped going when Dongmin had to threaten Jaehyun’s ex who sometimes works at the register. Dongmin ducks his head as they enter, and is relieved to see the guy isn’t there. 

When they enter, Sungho and Sanghyeok are already seated at the table. Donghyun calls out to them, which makes both Sanghyeok and Dongmin flinch. Donghyun realizes his mistake, and apologies to Sanghyeok with a kiss on the cheek as he slides into the seat next to him. Dongmin stands awkwardly at the end of the table, unsure how to greet the other two men at the table. His relationship with both of them is awkward at best, even if they don’t realize. Thankfully, Donghyun doesn't have an awkward bone in his body. Or maybe he cares so little that it breaks the tension. Dongmin wishes he was like that. 

“Guys, this is my friend from Art History I told you about, Dongmin. Although you kind of already met him, hyung.” Donghyun says, turning to Sanghyeok for the last part. Sanghyeok smiles at him, blushing a bit at the mention of their first encounter. Dongmin might have a cuteness aggression problem.

“That's Sungho-hyung, but you know that, and this is Sanghyeok-hyung, who you also already know. And me!” Donghyun says, gesturing to each of his friends, then himself. Sungho looks at Dongmin quizzically at the suggestion that Dongmin knows who he is. 

“Stop being awkward and sit. You're making Sanghyeok-hyung nervous.” Donghyun says with a mischievous smile. Sanghyeok punches his chest lightly, and furrows his brows at him. 

“No you’re not, Dongmin-ssi.” Sanghyeok says, turning on his best smile, gesturing for Dongmin to take the seat next to Sungho. He does, and Sungho turns to him and studies his face.

“I don’t know your face. Why do you know who I am?” Sungho asks, face all twisted up and pouting. Damn. He kind of understands Jaehyun now. 

“Oh, Jaehyun’s my best friend. I was there when he, ya know.” Dongmin says, awkwardly. He really has to get better social skills if he’s gonna make new friends. Sungho’s eyes lighten up for a second, a smile gracing his face. 

“Oh! Jaehyun-ah is so sweet, how is he?” Sungho says, completely ignoring the fact that he turned Jaehyun down. 

“He’s good, I guess…”

“Wait, who is Jaehyun?’ Sanghyeok asks, looking between Sungho and Dongmin. 

“This guy in our year, remember when I told you about the guy who asked me out at the party and I felt bad for turning him down?” Sungho says. Sanghyeok and Donghyun roll their eyes.

“Dummy. That's every party we go to.” Donghyun says, then turns to Sanghyeok to give more context. 

“He’s that guy who looks like a puppy turned into a human? He walks Dongmin around on a metaphorical leash?” Donghyun says, face fully serious. Sanghyeok’s eyes widen at the same time Dongmin chokes on air at Donghyun’s words.

“Donghyun-ah! You cannot just say things like that!” He chastises his boyfriend. As he catches his breath, Sungho pats his back to help him breathe. 

“But you know who i'm referring to now, right?” Donghyun asks, miffed about Sanghyeok’s reaction and pouting. Sanghyeok sighs, clearly more amused at Donghyun’s antics than irritated. He looks and Dongmin from across the table and mouths ‘sorry’ before turning back to Donghyun.

“Yes, I do.”

Sungho decides now is a good time to chime in. 

“Donghyun, if you want him to keep spending time with us, you gotta be less…” Sungho pauses to find the right word and gestures with his hands. Dongmin clears his throat, and they all look at him. He sweats a bit under the attention.

“It’s okay. I already know my relationship with Jaehyun is codependent at best. That’s why I'm here, to branch out and stop being attached to him.” Dongmin says. He doesn’t mind Donghyun’s bluntness, he finds. It’s a bit off putting, but he can tell he’s a good person. He hasn’t said anything untrue, and he doesn’t seem to say it with malice. 

Donghyun seems to find a small fault with his claim, and clarifies. 

“Where here to help him get over Jaehyun. He’s got an embarrassing crush on him.” Donghyun reveals to the table. Sanghyeok facepalms so hard the smack echoes through the quiet cafe, and Sungho turns to Dongmin with a shocked expression. Dongmin snorts, as finds he doesn’t mind his secret being shared with these guys. The only person he’s ever talked about this with other than Donghyun is his brother Woonhak. Maybe it'll help his mission to talk about it. 

“Oh shit! Before or after he hit on me?” Sungho asks. Dongmin laughs.

“Before. Like, as long as I can remember actually.” Dongmin admits. Sungho’s face drops, and he can hear Sanghyeok gasp. 

“See? We have a serious task ahead of us.” Donghyun adds. 

“Dude, that sucks.” Sungho says, placing a hand on Dongmin’s shoulder. He shrugs, because it's just a fact of life for him. The earth is round, the sky is blue, Dongmin loves Jaehyun.

“Sure, but that's just how it goes, ya know?” Dongmin says. He isn't able to say much else because the server comes to take their orders. He’s happy that after they order, the conversation steers away from Jaehyun. 

By the time they all leave the cafe, Dongmin is realizing how much he missed out on having friends outside of Jaehyun. He doesn’t have to check his facial expressions or refrain from reaching out and pushing Jaehyun’s hair behind his ear. He doesn’t have to think so hard. It's a bit freeing. 

He gets along really well with the guys, and Dongmin ends up liking them more than he thought he would. 

“Do you have another class after this?” Sanghyeok asks as they walk back to campus. Sungho and Donghyun are in front of them talking loudly and pushing each other's shoulders as they walk. Dongmin finds it endearing. 

“Nope. Thursdays I only have morning classes.” Dongmin responds. Sanghyeok is really nice, Dongmin thinks. He’s quieter like Dongmin, but seems to open up whenever Donghyun eggs him on. The two of them get along so well and work together like a seamless machine, despite Sanghyeok having to occasionally remind Donghyun to not be too blunt with his words. Dongmin thinks it’s refreshing to know he won't have to guess what Donghyun is thinking.

“That's great! I don’t either. You should rest after this. I know meeting new people can be a bit tiring.” He says simply. It makes Dongmin smile. 

“Yeah. I should, but I know Jaehyun will want to see me after he leaves his friends.” Dongmin’s heart flutters a bit when he thinks of Jaehyun, greeting him with a hug, telling him he missed him. This was going to be so much harder than he thought.

“Does hanging out with Jaehyun drain your energy, or boost it?” Sanghyeok asks, a smile on his face as he looks up at Dongmin. What an interesting question. Dongmin has never thought about it.

“It depends, I guess. When it's just me and him, he boosts my energy. Everything about him is so bright and warm, I can’t help but match his level of excitement.” 

Sanghyeok hums, turning to forward again at Donghyun, who is laughing loudly with Sungho. 

“Sounds kind of like me and Donghyun,” he pauses before continuing. “What about the other times?”

Dongmin frowns a bit. 

“It can be a bit draining to be around him when he’s with others. It’s not that he ignores me or anything, he’s actually really attentive, but it makes me sad sometimes knowing that among all the people in the room, I'm just another friend. Sure, I'm his longest friend, his most important, but I'm still just a friend. At the end of the day, someone will become more important than me, and it could be anyone in the room.” Dongmin admits truthfully. It's a bit weird, saying it all aloud. He finds he wants to keep talking. 

“And the jealousy, you know? It makes it hard to make friends. Jaehyun likes everyone. He meets someone new and it’s always a crush soon after. The jealousy I feel eats me whole, and I end up scaring off potential friends just because Jaehyun had a one sided crush.”

Sanghyeok is quiet for a while, and Dongmin really lets the weight of what he’s saying sink in. Dongmin’s entire life is about Jaehyun. All the interesting things about him are Jaehyun . 

“It’s not a bad thing to love him, you know.” Sanghyeok says, so sure of it. Dongmin feels upset hearing it. How could being in love with his best friend not be a bad thing? He isn’t done though. 

“Me and Donghyunnie have known eachother since highschool. Not as long as you and Jaehyun, but it's been a while.” 

Dongmin didn’t know that. He assumed they must have met recently since they just began dating openly.

“We pinned after each other secretly for a while, and I struggled a lot with the idea of being in love with my best friend. I felt like I was betraying him, his friendship, with motives like that. But it's not like that, Dongmin.” he pauses, searching for the right words. 

“When we love someone, we would do anything for them to be happy. We would watch from the sidelines their entire lives if it meant they got to live their dreams. There’s nothing wrong with loving someone, no matter if they love you back or not.” He stops Dongmin, reaching to place his hand on his shoulder, looking Dongmin deep into his eyes. 

“But you have to love yourself more. Do not put your own life on hold just because of him.”

Dongmin gulps, and his chest aches so bad he thinks he might cry. How the fuck did he stumble into the worlds most emotionally intelligent friend group?

“Okay.” 

Sanghyeok smiles, and then Donghyun’s voice cuts through their moment.

“Hyung! Stop being intense! I’m gonna be late for class!”

Sanghyeok drops his hand, giving him one last smile before turning to face Donghyun and Sungho. 

“Fine! Wait up!”

Dongmin thinks he should look into a therapist.

Dongmin waits by the dining hall entrance for Jaehyun. Just as he expected, Jaehyun texted him with a request to walk him home. Dongmin still lives on campus, opting to stay in the dorms after Jaehyun wanted to get an apartment with a few of the guys in his year. Despite it, Jaehyun usually spends a lot of time in Dongmin’s single room, and hogs the Twin XL mattress when he has a perfectly good full back at his apartment. Dongmin doesn’t mind, Jaehyun just tells him to cuddle him if he wants to lay comfortably. Small victories. 

Jaehyun bounds out of the room with two guys, Matthew and Gunwook, and looks around. His face breaks into a blinding smile once he sees Dongmin, and Dongmin knows his smile looks the same. How could anyone look at Jaehyun’s smile and not immediately fall in love?

He turns to his friends and waves goodbye before running over to Dongmin with his arms wide open. In seconds, he has him wrapped in a bone crushing hug, and Dongmin is left to wonder if Jaehyun is secretly lifting weights late at night.

“I missed you, my Dongminnie.” Jaehyun says, tucking his face into Dongmin’s neck and inhaling. Now, Jaehyun has always been a bit dramatic. He's used to Jaehyun acting like they've been separated for years when in reality it's only been a few hours. Jaehyun texts him he misses him when they're in their classes, when Dongmin drops him off at his apartment and begins his walk back to campus, and even when Dongmin goes to the bathroom during their nights out. Jaehyun is silly, and he likes to play clingy. But he’s never sniffed Dongmin before.

“You smell different.” He says, not removing his face from Dongmin’s neck. His lips graze Dongmin’s neck lightly when he speaks, and Dongmin summons every ounce of willpower to not shiver at the sensation. He just squeezes Jaehyun tighter, and hopes Jaehyun ignores how fast his heart is beating. 

“Like, bad?” Dongmin asks, his voice a bit strained as he tries to refrain from screaming. Jaehyun is relentless, and seems set on destroying Dongmin without him even knowing, and giggles against Dongmin’s neck. He needs to die, now.

“No. You just don’t smell like me anymore.” Jaehyun says, finally removing his face from its hiding spot. Unfortunately, now it's Jaehyun’s words that cause him to almost combust. Jaehyun looks him in the eyes and Dongmin tries to form a coherent response. Jaehyun’s pretty lashes are so distracting, so it is really difficult. 

“Does that upset you?” Dongmin finds himself saying. He hadn’t meant to ask, but he’s happy he did. If Jaehyun wanted him to walk around smelling like him, he’d buy a bottle of the same collonge Jaehyun uses in an instant. He’ll roll around in Jaehyun’s laundry and bedsheets until his skin only knows how to smell like him. 

Jaehyun’s face goes a bit red at Dongmin’s question, and Dongmin wants to bite one of his cute round cheeks. He shouldn’t be allowed to be this close to Jaehyun for extended periods of time.

“Oh! Not upset, I guess. It's just that, when you smell like me, it reminds me that we're so close. It's silly.” Jaehyun admits. It’s really becoming hard to refrain from doing stupid with Jaehyun this close and this cute. Dongmin isn't thinking when he asks his next question,

“Do you like it when you smell like me?”

Jaehyun’s face turns such a cute shade of bright scarlett that Dongmin thinks he might pass out from how fast the color rushes to his face. 

“Uh,” He looks away from Dongmin, and Dongmin is grateful for the reprieve from everything that is Jaehyun’s starry eyes. “I mean, yeah. Why do you think I keep borrowing your hoodies? It makes me feel safe.”

Dongmin’s entire stomach is buzzing full of butterflies. Jaehyun doesn’t know what that does to him. He’s going to go crazy.

“You’re so silly. Why didn't you tell me?” Dongmin asks with a little laugh, trying to bring a playful edge back to the conversation. Jaehyun groans, finally removing his hands from around Dongmin’s waist to cover his face.

“What, and risk sounding like a pathetic omega who needs their alpha to scent them to feel comfortable?” Jaehyun mumbles from behind his hands. Dongmin has no idea what he just said. 

“What?” Dongmin asks, all previous flustered energy leaving his body as he tries to comprehend what Jaehyun is talking about. Jaehyun laughs, removing his hands and shaking his head. 

“Don’t worry about it. Let's go, I wanna watch a movie or something before my roommates get home.”

30 minutes later, Dongmin is wrapped in a blanket with Jaehyun leaning on his shoulder. Small victories. 

Hanging out with Donghyun and co becomes a regular occurrence. They're sitting on the couch of the apartment Sungho, Sanghyeok, and Donghyun live in when the topic comes up. 

“Why did you never tell Jaehyun-ah how you feel?” Sungho asks, his head in Sanghyeok’s lap getting his hair stoked. His legs are on Dongmin’s lap, and he’s been playing with the hem of Sungho’s jeans absentmindedly for a while. Dongmin used to think he wasn’t the biggest fan of physical touch. It seemed like when anyone but Jaehyun touched him, his skin would crawl. He came to enjoy that Jaehyun was the only one who could touch him comfortably, but then Sungho looped their arms together while they walked from campus to his apartment, and he didn’t mind it. It was nice, actually.

“By the time I realized, too much time had passed.” Dongmin says simply. 

“What’s that story?” Donghyun asks from in front of the tv. He’s been trying to get this ancient tape player to start for 30 minutes, and he’s not having much luck. Dongmin is feeling too lazy to try and help.

“It wasn’t anything crazy. We were in highschool, and I was, as usual, attached to Jaehyun at the hip. We were walking home from school one day and Jaehyun told me he was gay.” Dongmin pauses, thinking of the fond memory. “He told me he wanted me to be the first to know, because I was the most important person in his life. He said he knew I would accept him.”

Sungho makes a noise in his throat that sounds like a muffled squeal.

“I told him he was right, that I would accept him no matter what. When I went home that day, I realized I had never thought about something like that for myself. I hadn't ever thought about anyone in that way. I knew I found people attractive, but I'd never actually wanted to date anyone. Then, Jaehyun and I went to a party together and I got tipsy for the first time. I looked Jaehyun in his eyes, and it all hit me at once. I threw up in the bathroom, and that is the one and only time Jaehyun has had to carry me out from a party.”

Dongmin looks up from where he had been playing with Sungho’s jeans to find three sets of eyes staring at him. 

“What?” He asks, suddenly shy under all the attention. 

“You only talk alot when it's about Jaehyun-ssi.” Donghyun says. He’s looking at Dongmin like he would look at a cute animal video on his phone before sending it to Sanghyeok.

“It’s really endearing, how much you love him.” Sanghyeok says, pushing a few strands on Sungho’s hair behind his ear. Sungho nods.

“Yeah. Listening to you ramble about him is like, better than any romance novel monologue I've read.”

Dongmin scoffs, feeling his face heat up. It’s weird being able to talk about his desperate feelings.

“Stop. It’s not even like I said anything crazy.” Dongmin says, hoping they drop the topic. 

“Sanghyeok-hyung doesn’t tell stories about me like that.” Donghyun says, turning around fully to pout at his boyfriend. Sanghyeok rolls his eyes, but his smirk always betrays him.

“That’s not even true. I just don’t do it in front of you cause you like to tell the stories.” He says. 

“Yeah, and Sanghyeok-ah is too busy staring at you with heart eyes to care if you're telling them right.” Sungho says, removing his legs and head from their human pillows. He slides down off of the couch and onto the ground, scooching next to Donghyun and taking the tape out of his hand to fiddle with the machine. Donghyun stands, replacing Sungho in their laps. Dongmin plays with the hem of Donghyun’s sweatpants instead. 

“Yeah, well he’s pretty. What am I supposed to do?” Sanghyeok says, running his hand through Donghyun’s hair as Donghyun closes his eyes and leans into the touch. Dongmin should feel a bit jealous, but he really doesn’t. Being around Sanghyeok and Donghyun doesn’t feel like being around a gross couple who can’t understand the boundaries of PDA. It feels like being around a bonded pair of cats. They are just like that, like magnets. 

Dongmin’s phone rings, and he’s a bit confused at first. No one calls him, not even his mom, without texting him first. When he pulls his phone out, he’s even more surprised to see it’s Jaehyun facetiming him. He panics, and jumps up from the couch. They all look at him with a concerned look.

“Jaehyun’s calling. Gonna make sure he’s okay.” He says, stepping into the kitchen to take the call. The kitchen and the living room are connected, so there is almost no point, but it's the thought that counts. He answers, and Jaehyun’s face fills his screen, a pout waiting for him. When Jaehyun realizes he picked up, his smile nearly knocks the wind out of Dongmin. He’s even beautiful through the dumb phone camera.

“Hyung, are you okay? Why are you calling?” Dongmin asks. Scanning Jaehyun’s face on his screen. He looks okay, so Dongmin calms down a bit.

“Dongminnie! Where are you? That’s not your dorm.” He asks, completely ignoring his question.

“I'm with friends. Why are you calling instead of texting?” Dongmin asks again. Jaehyun deflates a bit, and his eyebrows furrow a bit. 

“Friends? Why are you being so vague? And what, am I not allowed to call you now?” Jaehyun’s annoyed voice echoes around the room. 

“What? No! You just never call me out of nowhere so I thought something was wrong. And I'm not being vague, I literally only have four friends, hyung.” Dongmin says, trying to do a bit of damage control.

“Four? Are you excluding me, or Woonhak?” Jaehyun presses, whining even more. Dongmin has no idea what’s going on.

“Obviously Woonhak. He’s my brother, he doesn’t count.”

Jaehyun just stares at him through the phone for a second before sighing. He seems to calm himself down, and sheepishly moves on. 

“Sorry for worrying you, I’m fine. I just miss you and thought it’d be nice to see your face.” Dongmin swears Jaehyun’s face is red, but the video is cutting up a bit so he can't tell.

“I was going to ask if you're coming over later, my roommates are gonna be gone. But, I can see you at a different time if you're busy today.” Jaehyun looks a bit sad as he speaks. In reality, Dongmin and Jaehyun have seen each other a lot this week. But, pre-’Donghyun and Co’ , Dongmin would've been at campus waiting for Jaehyun’s class to finish so they could loiter around for a while. Donghyun invited him over to watch something he won’t tell anyone what it is, and he figured it would be fun. He feels a bit guilty knowing that Jaehyun feels his absence so much. Maybe Dongmin’s codependency has affected both of them.

“Oh. well, if you're cool with it, I can come over after i'm done here? I can sleep over.”

Jaehyun’s eyes widen at the offer, and Dongmin laughs at him. Dongmin doesn’t usually sleepover. He tells Jaehyun it's because he gets antsy sleeping in a bed that isn't his own. It's true, but he always feels comfortable in Jaehyun’s bed. He just likes waking up in Jaehyun’s room amongst his things like he belongs too much to indulge very often. 

“Really, you will?” 

Dongmin loves him so much.

“Of course. I miss you too, or whatever. I'll let you know when I'm on my way.” 

Jaehyun squeals, and Dongmin’s chest hurts so bad. 

“‘Kay. I’ll see you later.” His smile falters for a second before he continues. “Tell Donghyun-ssi and your other friends I said hi. I wanna meet everybody one day.”

Dongmin smiles at him. 

“Of course. See you later, Hyung.”

Jaehyun waves and then hangs up. Dongmin’s mind is reeling from that whole interaction. He turns to look back into the living room to find three pairs of eyes staring at him again. They all have varying degrees of confusion written on their faces. Dongmin laughs awkwardly. 

“So…” Sanghyeok starts. 

“Does Jaehyun-ssi always act like a jealous wife?” Donghyun continues.

“Or is this something brand new and special?” Sungho finishes. The three of them are a bit creepy when they get like this, like the three headed dog cerberus. 

“I… I don’t know what that was. He’s been acting weird lately.”

Dongmin makes his way back to the couch, and hesitates in front of it. Donghyun seems to immediately know what is going through Dongmin’s mind before the thought even fully forms in his head. He smiles so wide it's almost creepy, and slides away from Sanghyeok to the other side of the couch, leaving the same space that existed between Sanghyeok and Dongmin earlier. He looks at Sanghyeok, who just pats the spot on his lap with a kind smile on his lips. Dongmin leaps. Well, no he walks, and gently lowers himself down onto the couch, head in Sanghyeok’s lap and feet in Donghyun’s. Sanghyeok begins messing with his hair, and Donghyun squeezes his calf. A bit of anxiety melts from his body, and he lets himself relax. 

Sungho, the genius, seems to have figured out the tape player, and pops it in finally. 

“Tell us more after this. I asked Sanghyeok-hyung’s mom for the tapes of his elementary school choir performances.” Donghyun says, massaging Dongmin’s calf as Sungho presses the play button.

“Donghyun!” He squeals, not stopping the hand that plays in Dongmin’s hair as he swats at Donghyun’s shoulder. 

“Incoming!” Sungho warns, but it's too late. Dongmin doesn't have time to brace himself before all of Sungho is plopped down on top of him, knocking the air out of his lungs. Once he can breathe again, he laughs so hard he almost cries.

Donghyun gives Dongmin a hug as he leaves the apartment a few hours later, but stops him before he can pull away and head out. 

“How’s project ‘get-over-Jaehyun’ going? Any changes?” He asks. Dongmin smiles, even though his answer isn't a good one. 

“Nothing so far. It actually seems like it's gotten worse, if i'm honest.” Dongmin feels like Jaehyun has gotten clingier the last 3 weeks that he’s been distancing himself. He hasn't even been that much less available, but Jaehyun seems to sink his claws deeper into Dongmin the more he pulls away. Dongmin hates that he loves it, because it doesn’t mean to Jaehyun what it means to Dongmin. 

“That's how it goes. Worse before it gets better. Text me when you get to his place.”

Dongmin nods, and heads out. 

It’s 9pm when he arrives at Jaehyun’s. He types the code into the keypad, and steps into the apartment. Jaehyun is sitting on the couch, covered in blankets, fast asleep. Dongmin’s heart aches as he looks at the man, puffy cheeked and mouth parted slightly as he snores lightly. It’s a really cute sight. Then, he remembers that Jaehyun was waiting for him, and must've dozed off. A bit of guilt stabs at his beating heart. He closes the door as quietly as possible, toeing off his shoes and stepping into the apartment fully. He approaches the couch, and despite his light steps, Jaehyun seems to sense his presence, and opens his eyes slowly. He looks up at Dongmin and blinks sleepily a few times. Dongmin does not resist his urge to ruffle Jaehyun’s hair. He smiles up at Dongmin once it registers in his brain who is standing in front of him. 

“Minnie! There you are.” Jaehyun says, wrapping his arms around Dongmin’s torso. He pulls him closer, resting his forehead on Dongmin’s stomach. Dongmin almost pulls away, but he can’t. It feels so good to be held by Jaehyun. He tries to settle his heart, and hugs the back of Jaehyun’s head. 

“I'm here. Sorry for taking so long.” Dongmin says, patting the back of Jaehyun’s head. He groans in response to the touch, and nuzzles against Dongmin’s stomach. Dongmin’s body lights of fire at that. What the fuck has gotten into Jaehyun?

“You smell different again. I don’t like it.” Jaehyun mumbles against his stomach. The sensation tickles, bringing an involuntary giggle out of Dongmin. Jaehyun looks up at Dongmin now, chin resting on stomach light. 

“I'm sorry?” Dongmin offers him. Jaehyun just pouts, and Dongmin can just picture his little dog ears all flopped down and sad.

“Can you wear my hoodie while we cuddle?” Jaehyun asks. His cheeks are a little red as he waits for Dongmin’s response. Jaehyun may have to wait a while, because Dongmin’s mind has short circuited. He can't form words, so he just nods, which causes Jaehyun to beam up at him.

“Great! I'm too tired to watch a movie now, so can we just go straight to sleep?” Jaehyun asks, detaching himself from Dongmin. 

“Uh, yeah. That's fine.” Dongmin says, backing up from Jaehyun as he stretches. Dongmin then notices what Jaehyun is wearing. The hoodie that disappeared from Dongmin’s closet a few days ago, the one that has Dongmin’s surname on the back. Fuck. 

Jaehyun stands from the couch, rubbing his eyes cutely and Dongmin thinks he's going to die. 

Jaehyun pulls out one of his hoodies when they get to his room. Dongmin holds his hand out for the item, but Jaehyun just puts it on the bed next to him and beckons Dongmin closer. Dongmin, who hasn't thought properly since he stepped foot in the apartment moments ago, goes without question. He stops in front of Jaehyun, and for a second, Jaehyun looks nervous. The look is quickly replaced with something Dongmin doesn't think he’s seen in Jaehyun’s eyes before. Something darker.

Jaehyun lifts his hands slowly, placing them on the bottom hem of the hoodie Dongmin is wearing. He plays with the fabric for a second, before looking back up at Dongmin. Dongmin’s heart is pounding so fast he thinks he can hear it echoing around the room. If Dongmin didn't know any better, he would think Jaehyun was trying to help him take off his hoodie. For no reason. 

Jaehyun raises the fabric a bit, just above the top of Dongmin’s pants, and Dongmin gasps. Jesus christ, Jaehyun was trying to strip him. Jaehyun stops when Dongmin gasps, and meets his eyes again. He tilts his head slightly, a question. Is this okay? Dongmin wants to tell him that it's more than okay. He wants to tell him to do whatever he wants to Dongmin. He settles for a simple nod instead. Jaehyun smiles, but the intense look in his eyes never goes away. Dongmin is going to need a new heart in the morning. 

Jaehyun begins lifting again slowly, making sure to not take Dongmin’s undershirt with it. Dongmin raises his arms to get it over his head, and he shudders at the way Jaehyun’s fingers feel against his arms. Once the hoodie is off, he’s left in his black tank top. Jaehyun’s eyes scan him for a few seconds before he turns away to grab the new hoodie. It's one of Jaehyun’s oversized ones, so it'll fit nicely on Dongmin’s slightly taller frame. Jaehyun helps him with this one too. Helping him pull it over his head, and their faces are so close Dongmin thinks he could count each of Jaehyun’s eyelashes. He doesn't even attempt to, though. Too obsessed with the way Jaehyun is looking at him.

Jaehyun pulls the hoodie down Dongmin’s torso, and his hands linger on Dongmin’s sides. Dongmin is going to explode if they continue any longer, so he speaks.

“Are you ready for bed?” He says, his voice sounds so distant in his ears. The only thing that is filling his senses properly is Myung Jaehyun, so he can’t be bothered to care. This does seem to snap Jaehyun out of his daze, causing a light blush to settle onto his cheeks. 

“Yeah.” He says, turning from Dongmin and crawling into the bed. He takes his spot against the wall, and opens the blanket for Dongmin to join him. Dongmin gets a bit lightheaded thinking about the current implications of them wearing each other's hoodies and cuddling to sleep. A mix of their smells blending together, creating something brand new and entirely them. Jaehyun doesn’t know what he’s doing to him. 

He climbs into the bed, and Jaehyun is on him immediately. He wraps a leg around Dongmin’s torso, plants his face in Dongmin’s neck, and puts his hand on his chest, right over Dongmin’s heart. Dongmin has no time to react to each action individually, so he decides to just accept it.

“You okay? You’re cuddly today.” Dongmin asks, wrapping an arm around Jaehyun’s torso and bringing him closer. Jaehyun sighs into his neck, making goosebumps shoot up on his skin. 

“I'm fine. Just missed you.” Jaehyun says against his collar. If Dongmin were delusional, he’d say he felt a light kiss pressed to his neck. Dongmin isn't delusional though.

“I missed you too.” Dongmin says, meaning every word of it. He loves Donghyun and Co, but he also loves Jaehyun. Distancing himself for the sake of his own social life was going to take some getting used to. Hopefully Jaehyun would calm down soon too, and they can go back to Dongmin’s normal level of torture instead of the craziness he’s been experiencing lately.

“I’m still your best friend, right? Your favorite?” Jaehyun asks, drifting off to sleep.

“Myung Jaehyun, nobody comes above you.” Dongmin says with all the seriousness he can muster. Jaehyun snuggles a bit closer, and Dongmin can feel himself become tired too. 

“Good.”

Sungho is interesting to talk to. Sungho loves love. He thinks all things romance are the most interesting things in the world. His only problem is that all of his knowledge of romance comes from Romance novels and rom-coms. And Donghyun and Sanghyeok, but that's almost worse. 

“Dude, you’re saying he wore your hoodie that basically branded him as yours, made you wear his hoodie so you smelled like him, and even took your clothes off?” Sungho exclaims, way too loudly for the quiet cafe. Dongmin sighs. 

“It's really not like that, hyung!” Dongmin defends. Sungho isn’t taking that as an answer. 

“No, it is like that Dongmin-ah. That’s not normal friend behavior!” Sungho says, looking like he’s desperate to get Dongmin to see his point. 

“Okay! But me and Jaehyun aren't normal friends anyway. We're best friends.”

Sungho groans. 

“You're hopeless.”

“Who is hopeless?” Sanghyeok asks, a sleepy Donghyun trailing behind him. They're at the cafe a bit early because Sanghyeok had called a gathering. Sanghyeok is late to his own meeting, and judging by the state of his neck, Dongmin can assume why. 

“You know, they say a spray bottle is the easiest way to teach kittens not to bite.” Dongmin remarks, cackling at Sanghyeok. Sanghyeok’s entire face turns red as he slips into the seat next to Dongmin. He touches his neck as if looking for something. 

“My scarf…” He despairs. Donghyun looks proud as he slips into the seat next to Sungho. 

“Don’t worry, babe. You’re so pretty like this.”

Sanghyeok’s blush only deepens, and Dongmin fake gags. He takes back what he thought a bit ago about them not being gross.

“Donghyun, you fucking leech. I can’t go to class like this!” Sanghyeok whines, stamping his feet a bit. Dongmin scoffs at him, and Sungho laughs.

“Well I guess you'll just have to stay at home in bed with me all day. Let the leech take care of you.” Donghyun teases, which only makes Sanghyeok groan again.

“Okay. I need the foreplay to end now, I want to be able to eat my breakfast.” Sungho says, successfully diffusing the tension between the couple at the table.

“Right. Sorry,” Sanghyeok says, rubbing over his throat nervously. “I called you all here because I wanted to know if you're coming to the party the big frat is hosting this weekend.”

“Probably. Jaehyun-hyung loves going to parties.” Dongmin says. Donghyun looks at him with a disapproving look. 

“Confirming your attendance with ‘Jaehyun likes parties’ is kind of crazy.” Donghyun says, slinging an arm over Sungho's shoulder.

“He has something to tell you guys. About his little sleepover.” Sungho reveals. Sanghyeok holds out a hand. 

“In a sec. Are you going to Sungho-yah?”

“Yeah. I wanna see Dongmin-ah follow Jaehyun-ah around. Maybe meet him properly.” Sungho says with a smirk. Dongmin is going to kill him.

“Cool. You wanna go, babe?” Sanghyeok asks, serious as can be. 

“Woah. when did you two start calling each other ‘babe’?” Dongmin asks. Sanghyeok blushes a bit, and Donghyun puffs out his chest. 

“Since they consummated their marriage last night. You guys owe me a nice pair of noise cancelling headphones, by the way.” Sungho pipes up helpfully. Dongmin wishes he never asked.

“Yeah, I'm down to go.” Donghyun says, ignoring Sungho’s comment.

“Sorry, Sungho-yah. We didn’t think the walls were that thin…”

“Please. I don’t want to hear anymore. Let me tell you my story, please.”

They all turn to him, and Dongmin has come to enjoy when he has all their attention. It doesn't feel overbearing. 

“So I went over to Jaehyun’s and he was asleep on the couch when I got there. I go over to him and he hugs me around my waist and puts his head on my stomach. I was freaking out, the he sniffed me again and told me I didn't smell like him and he didn't like it, and-”

“Woah, stop. What do you mean ‘again’? He’s sniffed you before?” Donghyun asks, completely shocked. Oh, right. He hadn’t told them.

“Yeah. After I had lunch with you guys that first time, he hugged me and sniffed my neck and said I smelled different. Then he admitted to taking my hoodies so he smells like me because it makes him feel safe.”

They all look at Dongmin like he’s grown three heads. Was it that weird?

“Why is he acting like an omega in heat?” Sungho says, causing Donghyun to laugh.

“What does that mean? Jaehyun said he was embarrassed to tell me he did that because he was ‘acting like an omega who needed to be scented by their alpha’ or something. I have no idea what that means.”

The three of them all look at each other, exchanging thoughts in their weird, telepathic, three headed dog kind of way, before turning back to Dongmin at the same time. Freaky. 

“Nothing. Finish your story.” Sungho says, and Dongmin wants to press them for an answer, but he wants to rant more.

“Anyway. He asked me if I could wear one of his hoodies while we slept. But then I realized he was already wearing one of my hoodies, one he must have stolen from my closet without me realizing it a few days ago. It's the one with my surname on the back. I get why he took it, it's the warmest one, but it made me feel insane.”

Sungho sighs loudly when Donghyun and Sanghyeok gasp. 

“That's not the worst part.” he says, and Dongmin thinks he will kill Sungho later. 

“Shut up. We got to his room and…” Dongmin realises as he's about to say it outloud again that it is a bit weird. Strange. He thinks back to the look Jaehyun had in his eyes, the way he clinged to Dongmin after. There was no way he felt anything for Dongmin, so why was he acting like this? 

“...And?” Donghyun asks, bringing him out of his thoughts.

“He uh- He took my hoodie off and put the new one on.”

“He took off the hoodie he was wearing and put the other one on?” Sanghyeok asks. Dongmin gulps, looking to Sungho for help. Sungho shakes his head. Park Sungho’s days are numbered. 

“No. He physically removed the hoodie from my body himself, and put the other on me as well.” 

Sungho turns to his friends with an exasperated expression. They stare at Dongmin blankly, and Dongmin can’t even defend it anymore. That sounds crazy no matter how you put it. 

“Oh?” Sanghyeok says, completely incredulous.

“I need to ask you, what do you think Jaehyun feels for you?” Donghyun asks, trying to make sense of everything going on here.

“What do you mean? I think he loves me, but as a friend. Like he always has. He’s just going through something weird right now.”

All three of his friends groan in unison. 

“What?! Are you trying to imply Hyung has feelings for me or something?” Dongmin asks. 

“Yes!” The three of them speak together. Dongmin is fascinated by their freaky telepathy. 

“We’ve been holding our tongues for a while, but dude, it's so obvious. Nobody does these kinds of things with someone who is just a friend!” Donghyun argues. Dongmin scoffs, rolling his eyes. 

“No, listen. Think about the things you just said Jaehyun did. “ Sanghyeok says. Dongmin sighs. 

“Okay, now I've known Sungho-yah almost as long as you've known Jaehyun-ssi. Imagine me and Sungho doing that.” Sanghyeok says. Sungho closes his eyes, as if he's imagining it.

“Not you, creep.” Donghyun says, slapping his friend's shoulder with a laugh.

Dongmin laughs, but then he does. He imagines it, and… 

“Oh.” He says outloud. But, what? This doesn’t make any sense.

“You say oh, like you've had some kind of realization, but you still look confused.” Sungho points out. 

“If Hyung likes me, then why hasn’t he said anything?”

Sanghyeok looks like he’s about to have an aneurysm. Thankfully, Donghyun has all the patience in the relationship. 

“Why haven't you told him?” He asks simply. 

“Because I don’t want to ruin our friendship if he doesn't like me back.” Dongmin says. Donghyun stares at him until it hits him. Jaehyun is afraid too. Oh.

“Oh.”

“Finally!” Sanghyeok cheers, high fiving Sungho across the table. 

“Yeah, ‘oh’. So, what are you gonna do?’ Donghyun asks. Dongmin pulls out his phone and checks the time. It's 8:35 am. If he runs, he can catch Jaehyun before his class and make his big confession. 

“Excuse me, hyung. I gotta go tell him I love him.”

Dongmin is dripping in sweat by the time he reaches the building Jaehyun’s class is in. He enters the building, hangs a right, then a left, and rushes down the hall. He sees him, and his heart beats out of his chest. Jaehyun, beautiful Jaehyun. His Jaehyun. He likes Dongmin back. Dongmin goes to call out to him, but then he notices the guy Jaehyun is talking to. He’s taller than Jaehyun but only slightly. He’s got a pretty smile, and he’s using it to charm Jaehyun, his cheeks adorned with whisker-like dimples. Jaehyun is into it, he touches the man's chest. The guy leans in closer, whispering something in Jaehyun’s ear to make him giggle. Dongmin’s stomach turns horribly. Why did he let his delusional friends make him believe Jaehyun could ever love him back? Dongmin turns, and runs. He doesn’t stop until he reaches his dorm room. He turns off his phone, and for the first time in a long time, cries over Myung Jaehyun.

Dongmin doesn't realize he's fallen asleep until he’s woken up very rudely by heavy banging at his door. 

“Han Dongmin! Open up or I'm getting someone to bust down this door.” Donghyun’s voice travels through the heavy metal door and into his room. 

“Go away!” He yells back. He feels like a child, but he really doesn’t want to deal with Donghyun right now. Or anyone really.

“Dongmin-ah, please. Please don’t shut me out when I've worked so hard to get you to trust me. We’re friends. I can’t let you be all alone when you're hurting.” Donghyun says, sounding so sad through the door. It causes a sob to escape from Dongmin involuntarily. He actually really could use a hug right now. He stands from his bed, legs wobbly from lack of energy. He unlocked the door, and Donghyun opened it immediately. He’s got a bag with food in one hand, and a bag with fluffy blankets in the other. The blanket he always uses at his apartment, the spiderman one, sits on top. Dongmin wants to cry again.

“Oh, honey.” Donghyun coos, setting down the items in his hand and immediately wrapping Dongmin in a bone crushing hug. Dongmin lets it all go. The years of yearning, disappointment and feeling second best. Donghyun rubs his back and tells him it’s gonna be okay. Dongmin chooses to believe him, because he knows Donghyun will do his best to make it okay. 

By the time Dongmin has calmed down enough to speak, the food has gotten cold. Dongmin sits on his bed while Donghyun reheats the food in the microwave. He’s got the spiderman blanket wrapped around him, and he feels small. It’s not a bad kind of small, but it’s different. 

“I know you probably don’t want to talk about it, but I need to at least know if I'm kicking your best friend’s ass or not.” Donghyun says as he brings a bowl full of soup to Dongmin. Dongmin laughs dryly, but takes the bowl in his hands. Donghyun sits next to him, and grabs his own blanket covered in pretty jellyfish over his shoulders. Dongmin stares down at the bowl for a while, but he’s not sure he can stomach anything right now. The crying has ruined his appetite. 

“I ran all the way to the school, and he was flirting with some guy. Not even 12 hours after he… made me believe he liked me back, he’s flirting with some other guy. This is how it always is with him. I'm tired. I don't want to like him anymore.” Dongmin says, staring at his reflection in the bowl of soup. 

“Oh. That's horrible, Min. I'm sorry.” Donghyun puts a hand on Dongmin’s back, rubbing circles. Dongmin puts the bowl of soup on the ground, and wraps himself further into his blanket. 

“Not feeling the soup? Should I have gotten sushi instead? I didn't want to upset your stomach.”

Donghyun is such a good friend. 

“What time is it?” Dongmin asks instead of answering. Donghyun pulls out his phone, and checks the time. 

“2:45 pm. Why?” 

Dongmin sighs, and picks up his phone, turning it back on.

“Jaehyun’s classes ended ten minutes ago. He’s gonna be worried if he can’t get in touch with me.” Dongmin says as the logo pops up on his phone screen. Donghyun scoffs.

“Are you really worrying about him right now? What about wanting to get over him?” Donghyun says, and for the first time since he’s known him, he sounds irritated. This must be what Jaehyun feels when Dongmin scolds him for bad decisions in his love life.

“Yeah, and I do. But I need to let him know I'm busy so he doesnt think I'm just ignoring him. I want to stop liking him, not stop being friends.”

His phone powers on fully, and a flurry of worried texts from Jaehyun and the group chat that he has with Donghyun, Sanghyeok, and Sungho. He swipes them all away and calls Jaehyun. He picks up on the first ring.

“Dongminnie! Where are you? I was worried.” Jaehyun says instead of a greeting. Dongmin hates how it makes his heart flutter to hear his voice.

“Sorry. I just got a bit swamped with assignments. I might have to go hermit for a bit so I can clear this all out.” Dongmin explains. Whenever one of them has to cut out socializing to focus on work, they call it hermiting. Jaehyun thought it would be funny to call it that after he got a tarot reading during midterms in high school.

“Oh. Shit man, yeah. That’s fine.” Jaehyun says, and Dongmin can hear the disappointment in his voice. The rule is they aren't allowed to complain. They have both ditched studying for the other too many times, and now hermit time was a guilt free time. Dongmin feels guilty for lying about it, though.

“Sorry. When I'm done with everything I need to do, we can go back to normal.” Dongmin says, knowing that nothing will ever be normal between them again. Now that Dongmin is going to make a serious effort to move on, it is definitely going to be different.

“Right. Back to normal. Call me if you need anything, anytime.” Jaehyun says somberly. Dongmin hates that it sounds like the end. It is in a way. Things will never be the same.

“Okay. You too.”

The rest of the week passes Dongmin by in a blur. The only thing keeping him anchored to the ground while he avoids Jaehyun is how annoyingly caring and persistent his new friends are. And Jaehyun’s texts. 

[Jaehyunnie <3] 8:34 A.M.

Have a good day! Don’t study too hard and remember to eat.

[Jaehyunnie <3] 12:37 P.M.

I know you probably haven’t eaten yet, pls do. I'll bring you food if you need.

[Jaehyunnie <3] 4:15 P.M.

Take a break! You should stretch your legs, it's so nice out rn :3

[Jaehyunnie <3] 1:03 A.M.

I know I'm not supposed to complain, but I miss you. :< Please give sign of life. 

[me] 1:16 A.M.

I miss you too.

[Jaehyunnie <3] 1:17 A.M.

Jaehyunnie <3 reacted to your message ‘I miss you too.’ with heart

“Hey, I hope you know we love you, but staring at Jaehyun’s texts all sad like that is not what getting over him looks like.” Sungho says as he walks with his arm looped through Dongmin’s. Sungho likes to be escorted around like a princess lately, and Dongmin thinks he’s doing it to annoy Dongmin on purpose. Jokes on Sungho, Dongmin unfortunately thinks everything the guy does is stupid adorable.

“I know. I just really miss him. This is so stupid, it's been four days.”

Sungho pats his arm and offers him a silly overexaggerated frown. Yeah, Sungho is too cute for his own good.

“Well, a little, but I also get separation anxiety when I'm away from Sanghyeok or Donghyun for too long. It’s starting to happen with you too.” Sungho admits, like it's the easiest thing in the world to say. Dongmin really understands why everyone throws themselves at Sungho.

“What, you care about me or something?” Dongmin teases, knowing Sungho is going to give him a serious answer, he’s really just fishing.

“Of course I do. You're one of my best friends.” Sungho says, leaning into Dongmin. Oh. 

“Really?” Dongmin asks, unable to believe it.

Sungho looks at him briefly before facing forward again. 

“Yeah. You’re third place though.” He teases. Dongmin snorts.

“Of course. I know first is Sanghyeok and second is Donghyun”

Sungho lets out a scandalized gasp, gripping at his chest in mock offense.

“How dare you? Sanghyeok and Donghyun are tied for first, I'll have you know!” 

It's Dongmin’s turn for theatrics, doing his own offended gasp.

“Who is second, then?!”

Sungho smiles mischievously. 

“Sanghyeok’s dog, Daebak, of course.”

Dongmin laughs at his competition being a dog.

“Ah. I never stood a chance, did I?”

“Afraid not.”

Dongmin’s annoyingly caring friends were trying to convince him to do something stupid. 

“Come on, you have to come! You already said you would go!” Donghyun pleads, pulling on the sleeve of his shirt and pouting. He hates how quickly his friends learned that acting cute actually works on him and wasn’t a Jaehyun specific thing.Woonhak does it all the time.

“Yeah, but that was before I had told Jaehyun I was hermitting.” Dongmin whines, because they're being stupidly persistent about this.

“But you can just tell him we dragged you out if you see him! We don’t have to respect your stupid hermit rule.” Sungho says, hanging onto the other side of Dongmin’s sleeve with a matching pout to Donghyun. They're an evil duo.

“Sungho-yah, don’t call his stupid hermit rule stupid!” Sanghyeok calls from the closet where he has already taken to going through Donghyun’s clothes for Dongmin to borrow. Seems like he has no way out of this. He would feel better knowing he’s at the party and seeing Jaehyun be safe, even if he wants to avoid him.

“What if he wants to hang out?” Dongmin asks, because that's what he’s really worried about. Jaehyun is a cute and clingy drunk. Dongmin doesn't think his heart can take it if Jaehyun is hanging off of him all night. 

“Just trust us, okay? We know what we are doing.” Donghyun says, removing himself from Dongmin to help Sanghyeok pilfer through his closet. 

“Fine. But someone has to take care of me if I get drunk.” Dongmin concedes. Sungho cheers, pumping a fist in the air.

Dongmin looks at himself in Sanghyeok’s full length mirror and he’s a bit shocked at what he sees. Donghyun apparently went through a crop top phase, and the one they picked out for him to wear is simple. Black, tight, and stops right across his navel. He’s wearing a pair of Donghyun’s jeans as well, light washed and low rise. Sanghyeok threw one of his chunky belts into the mix and Dongmin felt insane staring at the patch of dark hair exposed on his stomach. He looks really fucking hot, and he’s a bit nervous about it. 

“Wow, I almost wanted to fuck you for a second.” Sungho says once he steps into the room. He’d been doing his hair, braiding back a few of his long strands away from his face. Dongmin snorts at the joke, but can’t commit to the smile he tries to send his way. 

“What, do you hate it?” Sungho asks, grabbing a few of Sanghyeok’s rings from his bowl of rings. There’s gotta be at least 50. Dongmin sighs.

“No, not exactly. I really like it, but it's so different from how I usually look.” Dongmin says, facing the mirror. He tries to pull down the crop top, but it just springs back up again. 

“Yeah, I get that. It can be uncomfortable to step out of what's normal.” Sungho says, reaching up to put an earring in his ear. He’s wearing a crop top as well, his top looser and his pants a bit tighter than Dongmin’s. He’s got the top of his boxers exposed as well, and Dongmin is not brave enough to add that kind of flare to his outfits just yet.

“It is. I also just can’t help but wonder what Jaehyun will think.” Dongmin says, raking a hand through his hair. He ponders if he should style it pushed back or not. 

“Yes, push it back.” Sungho says, reading his mind, “And like every other human being with eyes, he’ll think you look hot. His loss for being-” Sungho stops himself before he says something mean. Dongmin knows Sungho doesn’t mean it, but Sungho has a habit of saying dramatic things when he’s upset about something. Sungho was extremely surprised when he heard what happened between Dongmin and him, and apologized profusely for getting Dongmin’s hopes up. 

“Yeah, okay. Where are Sanghyeok and Donghyun?” 

They had only left to get the hair dryer for Dongmin, and they've been gone for a while. 

“My guess is either sucking face or getting drinks.” 

Dongmin hopes it's the latter.

Dongmin is sufficiently tipsy by the time they reach the party. The breeze blowing against his exposed abdomen is a strange sensation, but finds he might like it. The house is buzzing as usual, people all over. Sanghyeok takes a deep breath before letting Donghyun guide them into the party through the crowd. Dongmin has never come to party for his own enjoyment, but with the alcohol running through his veins and already getting checked out by multiple people as they walk into the party, he thinks he might get the appeal. Donghyun leads them straight to the kitchen, ready to get Dongmin wasted. Once they make it, he immediately pours them all a shot. Dongmin doesn't even care what it is, and throws it back after they clink their plastic cups together. 

“Okay, listen to me. We are on a mission tonight.” Donghyun calls over the music as he places the cup in the trash. They all huddle a bit closer to hear the game plan. 

“We need Dongmin to let loose, and maybe get someone’s number. We have three wingmen, we need to all do our best, okay?”

Dongmin rolls his eyes, but laughs. It's cute that they wanna help him like this. He thinks he can humor them for the time.

“Okay. Let's go dance!” Sungho says, grabbing Dongmin’s hand and dragging him out to the living room where everyone is dancing. Sanghyeok and Donghyun follow behind, and Dongmin tries to let himself go as he feels the music. It's upbeat and light, and truthfully, Dongmin loves dancing. He usually dances with Jaehyun at parties like this, but Sungho is a good dancer too. Dongmin can feel eyes on him from all angles, and swings his hips. He thinks about how pretty his waist looks in this outfit. Sungho is smiling at him, and Dongmin can feel a bit of the heavy weight on him, lift. 

Donghyun cuts in front of Sungho, separating them with a cheeky smile. He places both of his hands on Dongmins shoulders, and looks over to Sungho.

“Lemme cut in? I’ve got an idea.” Donghyun says, nodding over to something past Dongmin’s head. Sungho looks, eyes widening a bit, and then nods. 

“Cool by me, I'll go get some more drinks.” Sungho says, and waddles off to the kitchen. 

“What's your idea?” Dongmin asks, not bothering to look over his shoulder at whatever Donghyun saw. He trusts Donghyun enough to go along with it. 

“I think you should dance with me and Sanghyeok-hyung. It'll be hot.” Donghyun suggests, beckoning Sanghyeok over. He must have told Sanghyeok first, because he comes over immediately, replacing Donghyun’s hands with his own. Sanghyeok cheeks are a rosy pink from the alcohol, and smiles at Dongmin before leaning in.

“Is this okay? Donghyun is gonna dance behind you.” 

Dongmin nods, body too numb to care about more than just letting go. Sanghyeok grabs Dongmin’s hands, placing them on his waist, then returning his own to Dongmin’s shoulders. He can feel Donghyun behind him now, he has one hand Dongmins waist and is grinding on him from a respectful distance. Dongmin laughs a bit, and so does Sanghyeok, leaning forward and resting his head on Dongmin’s shoulder for a second. Dongmin thinks about Jaehyun, and knows Jaehyun would’ve burrowed further. Dongmin misses Jaehyun so much, he swears he can hear him calling out to him. 

“Dongmin!” 

Dongmin turns towards the voice, and he must be trashed if he’s imagining Jaehyun now. Face red, eyelids sparkling with pretty gold eyeshadow, and his signature mesh shirt. Dongmin must be really trashed. 

“Dongmin! What the hell?” He yells, and when Sanghyeok lifts his head at the noise, looking directly at Jaehyun, he realizes he might just be real. Right, Jaehyun was coming to this party too. 

“Hyung…” Dongmin says, and he really can’t come up with anything better to say. Donghyun has, thankfully, stopped grinding on him, but he still has a protective hand on his waist as he turns towards Jaehyun as well. 

“You tell me you're too busy to hang out cause you're studying, but then youre here and you didn't even bother to tell me you're coming?” Jaehyun yells over the music. The music is loud enough that really only the four of them can hear what's going on. 

“No, Hyung, it's not like that-” Dongmin goes to explain, but then the guy who Dongmin saw Jaehyun flirting with earlier in the week throws his arm over Jaehyun’s shoulder, pulling him into his side. Dongmin wants to kill something.

“What’s wrong?” He asks, features all twisted in concern at Jaehyun’s anger. Jaehyun looks at Dongmin, then to the hand Donghyun has around his waist, and the lingering hand Sanghyeok has on his chest. He sees it rise in Jaehyun, the hurt and betrayal. Jaehyun is good at hiding a lot of his feelings, but he cannot hide when he’s about to cry. Jaehyun shrugs the guy off of him.

“I’m going home.” he says, and takes off towards the exit. His friend goes to follow him, but Dongmin rushes forward out of his friend’s grasp, and puts a hand on the guy's shoulder. 

“I got it.” He says, and the guy frowns, challenging him. 

“Back off or i'll break your fucking nose.” Dongmin snarls, and pushes past him. He does his best to push through the crowd, but they are working against him. He needs to get to Jaehyun. He’s finally able to stumble out of the stupid party and see’s Jaehyun sitting on the curb a bit away, crying. Dongmin’s heart breaks, and he makes the decision to tell Jaehyun everything. He can’t keep hurting them both like this. It’ll ruin them either way. 

“Jaehyun.” Dongmin calls out, and Jaehyun looks up, surprised. Dongmin feels even worse that Jaehyun thought he wouldn’t come looking for him. 

“Go away, Minnie.” Jaehyun says through a sob, and turns his face away from Dongmin. Dongmin goes closer, and crouches in front of Jaehyun. Jaehyun avoids his gaze, but doesn’t move away. Small victories.

“Jae, let’s go somewhere quieter and talk. Please.” Dongmin pleads. Jaehyun sniffs.

“This is stupid. I don’t want to talk.” He says, still not looking at Dongmin. Maybe it's because he’s a bit drunk, but he lets go of the restraint, and reaches out to Jaehyun. Jaehyun doesn't move or flinch, and Dongmin counts that as another victory. He grabs Jaehyun’s jaw gently, his hands trembling a bit. He turns Jaehyun to face him, and Dongmin’s stupid mind can’t help but think how pretty Jaehyun looks, even like this. He lets the grip on Jaehyun’s jaw loosen, and moves his hand to cup Jaehyun’s cheek instead, rubbing away tears with his thumb. Jaehyun leans into the touch, eyes fluttering closed for a few seconds. Dongmin’s heart beats out of his chest, and He knows he will never love anyone the way he loves Jaehyun. That’s why it's so important he tells him this now. He doesn't want Jaehyun to ever question how much he means to him.

“Jaehyun, please. I'll explain everything. Let’s leave.” Dongmin asks, and he uses his best Jaehyun inspired pout when Jaehyun opens his eyes again. This causes Jaehyun to giggle, and snuggle further into Dongmin’s hand. 

“What about your friends?” He asks, trying to hide the bitterness in his tone. It doesn't work, Dongmin sees right through him.

“They're fine. I need to talk to you.”

Jaehyun takes a second, then nods. Dongmin smiles, and removes his hand from Jaehyun’s face to stand up. Jaehyun shivers, then reaches his hand out for Dongmin to help him to his feet. Dongmin hauls him off the ground, but doesn’t let go of his hand. He laces their fingers together, and begins walking Jaehyun away from the party, and towards his apartment. 

They walk until they see the park near Jaehyun’s place. Dongmin leads them there, and regrets not bringing a jacket when Jaehyun shivers. Dongmin feels impossibly nervous as they sit next to each other on the bench. He doesn't know where to start. 

“Before you say anything, I think there is something I should tell you first.” Jaehyun says, startling Dongmin a bit. Jaehyun wraps his arms around himself to shield from the chilly night air, and Dongmin wraps his arm around him immediately, bringing him closer to warm him. Jaehyun’s cheeks get pinker as he scooches closer to accept the warmth. 

“Okay. You can go first.” Dongmin says, even though he’d rather rip the band aid off. He supposes it's better if Jaehyun goes first, though. He may never hear what he has to say if he doesn’t. 

“Right. Okay.” 

It's silent for a while, and Dongmin nudges Jaehyun a bit, encouraging him to speak.

“Um. So, I guess it started a few years ago. Do you remember that party we went to in highschool? The one where you threw up and I had to carry you home?” Jaehyun says, wringing his hands together. 

“Of course.” Dongmin says, a bit confused as to why Jaehyun seems so nervous.

“Well, I guess it started then. And I've been ignoring it for years because why the hell would I complicate things like that? But then you started hanging out with Donghyun and his friends and I became so scared. I can handle not being the one you want, but I can’t handle not being your favorite. You started hanging out with them so much, and I would sometimes see you across campus with them laughing so hard. You seemed to be getting happier without me, ya know? And then, god this is so stupid, you stopped smelling like me? You always smell like me because we spend so much time together. It makes me feel like you're mine , you know? Anyone who is close enough to smell you smells me . Jesus thats so fucking weird, isn’t it?” Jaehyun pauses to catch his breath before continuing. 

“And then you fall off the earth to hermit, and show up here dancing with Sanghyeok-ssi and Donghyun-ssi? Looking like that? Moving like that? Dongmin, I'm going crazy. I can't pretend I don’t feel this way anymore. I can’t act like it doesn't eat me alive to know someday I won't be your favorite anymore.” Jaehyun wheezes. His eyes welled up with tears and he turned away from Dongmin. Dongmin must still be drunk. He thought the walk sobered him up, but Jaehyun wasn't making any sense. It sounds like he’s implying…

“Jaehyun, what are you trying to say?” Dongmin asks. His heart is pounding out of his chest, and he needs to know if he needs to never drink again or if Jaehyun is saying what it sounds like he’s saying.

“Don’t make me say it.”

Dongmin nudges Jaehyun a bit. Jaehyun doesn't budge. 

“Jaehyun, look at me.”

Jaehyun sighs, and turns to look at Dongmin. His eyes are wide, frightened. Still, Dongmin needs to hear him say it.

“Please, tell me what you mean. I can’t keep drawing conclusions based on half truths. I need you to be clear with me.” Dongmin pleads. Jaehyun softens, and fights to keep looking Dongmin in the eyes. 

“I have been in love with you since that day at the party. Well, probably longer, but  I realized then. We were dancing, and you looked at me with so much care, and I realized I wanted to kiss you. I was going to do it, then you ran away to throw up.” Jaehyun confesses. Dongmin’s brain stops working, his heart starts stuttering, and Dongmin thinks he might just die right there. So, Jaehyun does love him? 

“Say something, please.” Jaehyun begs, kicking all of Dongmin’s systems back online.

Dongmin turns himself in to fully face Jaehyun now. Jaehyun blushes at the proximity. How can he get any cuter?

“Kiss me.” Dongmins blurts. Jaehyun’s eyes widened.

“What? Stop. Don't do that.” Jaehyun argues, but he can see the way Jaehyun’s breath quickens. Dongmin is brave, so he reaches out to touch Jaehyun. He tucks hair behind his ear, and lets his hand linger on Jaehyun’s cheek.

“I’m not running this time. Please, Jaehyun. Please finish what you started.” Dongmin begs. Jaehyun’s breath hitches, and he leans in slightly. 

“Dongmin, I need you to be clear with me. Don’t just kiss me because I want it.” Jaehyun whines, looking at Dongmin’s lips. 

“Myung Jaehyun, I have been in love with you for as long as I can remember. Please kiss me, please please ple-”

Jaehyun grabs Dongmin by the collar of Donghyun’s crop top and smashes their mouths together. Dongmin immediately kisses back, pressing so hard he hopes their lips bruise each other. It’s better than Dongmin could have ever pictured. There’s no fireworks, no triumphant music signalling the victory. It feels as natural as breathing, like they should have been doing this all along. Dongmin feels breathless, but also like he can breathe for the first time in years. It's maddening, how long he deprived himself of the luxury of breathing in Myung Jaehyun. 

Jaehyun pulls away first, panting a bit from all of the force. Dongmin can't help the laugh that sprouts out of him, the relief of it all washing over him. Jaehyun loves him. What a fucking concept. Jaehyun laughs too, resting his head on Dongmin’s.

“Are we fucking stupid?” Jaehyun asks, looking up at Dongmin through his eyelashes.

“I think so.” Dongmin responds, pressing his thumb into the apple of Jaehyun’s cheek. 

Jaehyun brings them together again, the kiss less desperate but just as devastating. Dongmin doesn’t think he’ll ever get enough of this feeling. 

Jaehyun reminds them both that they are not dressed appropriately to keep kissing in the park at night, no matter how romantic it is, and convinces Dongmin to come back to his apartment so they can finish talking. Dongmin agrees easily, but remembers his friends are still at the party, possibly worried about them. He pulls his phone out to see he’s already gotten texts from their group chat. 

[Donghyun and Co.]

[Donghyun👽] 12:14 A.M.

omg you two are totally gonna kiss

tell us about it in the morning

[Sungho😺] 12:26 A.M.

please let us know youre safe, sanghyeok is gonna freak out if he doesnt hear from you by 1 am

[Sungho😺] 12:28 A.M.

And jaehyun. sanghyeok says make sure jaehyun is safe too

[Sanghyeok👶] 12:45 A.M.

Ar e y iou okay? jaehun ioka? call me 😡

[me] 12:53 A.M.

we are fine. Jaehyun and I are going back to his apartment. I'll call in the morning.

[Donghyun👽] 12:54 A.M.

use protection! 🤢

By the time Dongmin and Jaheyun get into the apartment, they are both exhausted. It's been an emotionally exhausting week, and the relief is weighing their bodies down. They immediately go to bed, Jaehyun lending Dongmin some clothes (some of which he'd stolen from Dongmin originally). They're finally in bed, Jaehyun with his face in Dongmin's neck and Dongmin’s arms around his waist, when Dongmin thinks to finally ask the question.

“Did you ever actually like any of those guys all these years?” Dongmin asks, suddenly wide awake. 

Jaehyun stirs, moving so he can look at Dongmin. 

“Kind of? I liked them, but they were kind of all placeholders. I got bored of everyone eventually. They weren’t you, and I never got past that.” Jaehyun admits. He seems a lot less flustered now that he knows Dongmin likes him back, which only makes Dongmin more flustered.

“But you. You said you’ve liked me for a while, when did you realize?” Jaehyun asks, reaching up to caress Dongmin’s cheek. He leans into the touch, and almost forgets that Jaehyun asked him a question.

“You know how you said you looked me in my eyes at that party in highschool, and something shifted? I felt it too. It hit me so hard I got nauseous.” Dongmin admits with a laugh. Jaehyun snorts, his body shaking from his own laughter. 

“Oh my god. How embarrassing for us.” Jaehyun manages to gasp through his laughter. 

“At least we figured it out.” Dongmin says, though figuring it out could have been so much simpler if either of them had been braver.

“Yeah. Don’t ever make me jealous like that again or I'll hulk out.” Jaehyun chastises, putting his face back in the crook of Dongmin’s neck. Dongmin snorts.

“I didn’t do it on purpose!”

“Whatever. Goodnight.”

Dongmin falls asleep with a smile. 

Jaehyun’s first official meeting with Donghyun and Co happens the next morning, because Jaehyun doesn't want to separate from Dongmin long enough for them to have brunch after the past week of not seeing each other. Thankfully, Donghyun and Co seem eager to meet him as well. Maybe too eager. As they walk hand in hand to the cafe, Jaehyun squeezes his hand to get his attention. Dongmin looks at him, and his cute aggression problem may have become even worse now that he can show Jaehyun just how much he loves him. Jaehyun had done his best to fix his messy hair this morning, but it still stuck up in odd places. He’s wearing the hoodie that he stole from Dongmin weeks ago, Dongmin’s surname plastered on the back, because Jaehyun admitted it made him feel good to be claimed like that. Dongmin told Jaehyun he has a few ideas on ways to claim him that aren't a hoodie. (Dongmin was so proud to make Jaehyun blush that brightly.)

“You’re not even listening to me, are you?” Jaehyun huffs, only half annoyed. Dongmin, in fact, had not been listening. He’s a bit stupid in love, and he can’t be expected to behave normally when Jaehyun looks like this.

“I’m sorry, you’re just so pretty. Say it again?” Dongmin says, which successfully diffuses Jaehyun’s irritation. 

“I said, are we officially boyfriends?” Jaehyun asks, only slightly nervous. Dongmin feels a bit silly realizing he hadn’t asked him that important question yet. He stops walking, making Jaehyun also halt his movements. 

“Yes, please? Be my boyfriend?” 

Jaehyun rolls his eyes, but the blush on his cheeks is a dead give away of his feelings.

“I guess, since you’re begging.” 

They walk into the cafe probably way too giggly and loud for the early morning vibes in the building, but Dongmin cannot bring himself to be embarrassed. That is, until he sees his friends sitting in their usual booth. They're all sitting at the same side of the table, Sanghyeok on the end with sunglasses over his eyes and Sungho with his head down on the table. Donghyun notices their approach, looking a lot more coherent than the other two, and smiles at them, waving wildly. 

“Dongmin-ah!” He says loudly into Sanghyeok’s ear, causing the man to wince and grab his face with a scowl. Dongmin laughs, and turns to Jaehyun next to him. Jaehyun is never nervous about meeting new people, but Dongmin could understand why he looks a bit apprehensive now. 

“Do they hate me?” Jaehyun whispers as they get closer. Dongmin squeezes his hand, and shakes his head. 

“No one could ever hate you, Hyung.” Dongmin says, and Jaehyun blushes. Once they reach the table, Dongmin slides into the booth first, pulling Jaehyun in after him as after he bows to his friends. They all bow back, Donghyun the only one able to muster up a smile. 

“You guys look horrible. Fun night?” Dongmin asks before introducing everyone. He hopes a little bit of joking will help ease the tension in Jaehyun’s shoulders. 

Sungho just groans, leaning against the back of the booth. Sanghyeok leans into Donghyun’s side.

“They ended up trying to outdrink each other. Don’t know why.” Donghyun says casually with a smirk that suggests he knows exactly why.

“You said that you would buy whoever drank more lunch for the rest of the semester!” Sungho exclaims, then immediately regrets it as he and Sanghyeok wince in unison.

“And I don’t know why either of you agreed to that when I already buy Sanghyeok-hyung lunch everyday.” Donghyun teases. Both boys on either side of them seem to have not realized that until that moment, and Dongmin laughs so loud that Sanghyeok pleads him to stop. Jaehyun seems utterly amused by them all, and visibly more comfortable.

After Dongmin settles down, he finally gets to introductions, even though they all technically know of each other. 

“You know Sungho-hyung, and this is Donghyun-ah and Sanghyeok-hyung.” Dongmin says, gesturing to each of them accordingly. Everyone tries to greet Jaehyun as politely as possible despite their hangovers. 

“Guys, this is Jaehyun, my boyfriend.” Dongmin says, his palms sweating as he snakes his arm around Jaehyun’s waist. Sungho seems to spring back to life at that, and even Donghyun and Sanghyeok look a bit surprised. 

“Really?” Donghyun says with a bright smile, and turns to look at Sungho beside him, who looks back just as enthused, “I fucking told you it would work! You owe me fifty bucks!” 

Sungho rolls his eyes.

“I don’t owe you shit, I never agreed to a bet!” 

Dongmin feels like his head is spinning, and he looks at Sanghyeok for an explanation as Sungho and Donghyun fall into an argument over the non-bet. Sanghyeok removes his sunglasses and massages the space between his eyes with his thumb.

“We planned that whole interaction at the party. We thought if we could get Jaehyun-ssi to be jealous, you’d finally say something. Seems like it worked.” Sanghyeok says with a smile, then turns to Jaehyun. 

“Sorry, by the way. I'm sure you know how stubborn Dongmin-ah is. It had to be done.”

Jaehyun laughs, and that draws the attention of the other two back to the conversation. 

“Oh my god, am I that easy to read?” Jaehyun says, looking over at Dongmin. Dongmin is glad he doesn't look upset, but rather amused.

“Yeah, but so is Dongmin-ah.” Donghyun says. 

“Does he talk about me alot?” Jaehyun asks. Dongmin immediately panics, and looks at his friends with daggers. It’s too late, he can see it in each of their faces that he’s already lost. 

“Oh, does he! I swear, he never looks happier than when he’s talking about you.” Sungho starts. 

“Hyung, don-” Dongmin starts, but then is cut off by Donghyun. 

“His eyes light up and he rambles on and on, like he has to get every thought out or he’ll explode.” 

“Dude!” Dongmin exclaims.

“And don’t get me started on how he talks about you. It's like you created the universe, strung up the stars yourself. It's adorable.” Sanghyeok finished. Dongmin gasps at Sanghyeok's betrayal, but he really had no reason to think Sanghyeok wouldn’t partake in his humiliation. He, Sungho and Donghyun were like a hive mind after all, their freaky little telepathic connection the bane of Dongmin’s existence. Dongmin hides his face in his hands, hiding away from Jaehyun’s stare. He can feel it burning a hole in the side of his head. 

“Really, he does?” Jaehyun asks the other men at the table, but Dongmin knows he’s still looking at him. Dongmin risks a peek through his fingers, and Jaehyun is smiling so softly at him that Dongmin’s face goes so red he might pass out. 

“Oh my god, he’s so red! Sungho-hyung, take a picture.” Donghyun says, laughing and pointing at Dongmin like a bully. 

Dongmin isn’t able to stop them from taking the picture no matter how hard he tries, and the wallpaper of their group chat is now a picture of Dongmin’s beet red face glaring at them. (The chat name has since been changed to [Dongmin’s faves] after adding Jaehyun, and Dongmin couldn’t be too upset. It was true after all. 

“So you and Jaehyun-hyung finally figured it out, huh?” Woonhak, Dongmin’s younger brother, says through the phone a few days later.

“Was it always obvious Jaehyun liked me too?” Dongmin asks, holding the phone to his ear as he walks from campus to Jaehyun’s apartment. 

“Oh, dude. Painfully so.” Woonhak teases, but Dongmin knows he’s serious.

“You didn't think to share that with me?” He accuses.

“And spoil the fun? Why would I ever do that!”

Dongmin is going to have to go back home next weekend and kick his brother’s ass.