Work Text:
Jungwon feels a tearing ache run down the length of his back, dispersing into his legs. After hours of numbness from nerves, his extremities welcome the dull pulse of muscle pain. The set had passed in a blur: one second he was huddled backstage with the others, breathing slow and heavy, the next he was turning his back to the crowd and retreating from the darkness. Jungwon appreciates that after all these years, he still gets sore after a good performance. It’s proof of a well made effort. After the adrenaline of the moment fades, it’s nice to have a reminder that it occurred, that he was physically there on stage. The ringing in his ears, sweat drying on his skin: It’s so much better then to see himself recorded on a screen, distorted and much less real.
The car ride back to the hotel is relatively quiet, everyone relishing the stillness and feeling of accomplishment. They have to take these moments when they can get them. So often they don’t have time to breathe before rushing to the next flight, next schedule, next performance. Sunoo is clicking around on social media, likely saving videos of their performance on his phone. He’s cute like that, wanting to store every memory he can on the limited gigabytes of phone storage he has left. Niki has his head rested on the tinted glass of the car, eyes closed but not asleep. His head thumps along softly with the bumps in the road, like a steady heartbeat.
“Jay-hyung,” Jungwon says, half whispering. He doesn’t have anything in particular he wants from the other man, other than to satisfy the urge to say his name.
“Mm?” Jay responds faithfully.
“Nothing, just love you.”
Jay smiles at him, eyes fond and mouth softened by exhaustion. If anyone in the car hears the tender exchange, they don’t make it known. The usual teasing is left for another time.
Jungwon finds Jay’s hand in the seat next to him. He doesn’t interlock their fingers, just rests his hand palm-to-palm with Jay’s bigger one. It’s sweet like this, skin touching skin passively. Heat pours from Jay’s palm into Jungwon’s clammy one. They sit thigh to thigh, shoulder to shoulder, letting gravity do the work of connecting their bodies. He likes that Jay lets him take what he needs, and doesn't move from his position to wrap Jungwon up under his arm. Jungwon knows the need for more will rise, probably once they get out of the car, when the quiet stillness gets interrupted.
Behind the doors of their hotel room, Jay will reach for him first, pull Jungwon shoulders forward into a chaste kiss. Jungwon will turn his head in response, digging deeper into the embrace, and the kiss will turn desperate. Through breathless gasps, Jungwon will find himself asking for more, for the full weight of Jay’s body pressing him down into the hotel mattress until they leave an indent that can’t be removed.