Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Dokja just can’t get used to it.

It’s been about a month since he moved in with his partner, and of course said partner just happens to be a popular Twitch streamer who likes to keep Dokja in the dark about his streaming hours. It’s happened more than a few times now where he almost walks into their joint bedroom without knocking. It’s times like that Dokja wishes his boyfriend was one of those loud and energized streamers, at least that way he’d be able to tell when the bastard is live. 

If Dokja hadn’t watched some of Joonghyuk’s streams himself he’d be thinking, What’s entertaining about a streamer that only opens his mouth for swearing, insults, and the occasional gameplay advice?

But Dokja knows why Joonghyuk’s interesting to watch. It’s not about how he interacts with chat, it’s not about funny commentary, it’s about his unquestionable aptitude for any game he picks up. Dokja never tires of watching his fingers move swiftly over the keyboard, the small movements of his eyes when fully immersed in what he’s playing. Also… Joonghyuk is fucking hot. Someone can only argue that Dokja is biased if they haven’t seen Joonghyuk. He’s well aware of how many people online fawn over his boyfriend. Anyone else might be jealous, but Dokja likes knowing he’s the only Joonghyuk simp the gamer pays attention to.

Plus… Dokja is pretty grateful for certain pieces of art and writing uploaded by the streamer’s fans… but that’s a story for another day.

Today, though? Dokja has nothing on his mind other than his bed as he fumbles the keys to their apartment. A nap before dinner sounds really nice, and it’d be even nicer if Joonghyuk joined him for it. Warn-out from work, he trudges his way to the bedroom.

Joonghyuk has a dilemma.

His partner keeps barging into the room while he’s streaming. He isn’t someone who scares easily, but he can’t help looking over to watch Dokja’s face shift into something startled whenever it happens. He could always move his gaming setup to the next room if it became an issue, but Joonghyuk honestly finds it quite endearing. Not to mention, moving his setup from their bedroom meant no more late cuddling on the bed while Dokja monopolizes his Switch to play Stardew Valley.

He can see the slow scroll of chat in the corner of his eye, but pays no mind to it, as usual. He’s streaming with Han Sooyoung, Yoo Sangah, and Lee Jihye today. Letting them do the commentary while he kicks their asses at MarioCart. They went with something easy, considering Han Sooyoung and Yoo Sangah don’t often stream gaming (although he’s well aware of Han Sooyoung’s eerie talent for first-person shooters).

Joonghyuk swiftly lowers the volume of his headphones with practiced speed after taking out the author with a red shell. He’d prefer needing hearing aids by the time he’s forty. Joonghyuk rolls his shoulders to relieve some tension, he’ll have to ask Dokja to massage his back once he ends stream.

And, as if on cue,

“Jagiya~ I’m home,” his boyfriend pushes the door open, the pet name clearly meant to tease, but… As his eyes trail over Joonghyuk’s rigid form, all fatigue leaves his face as he whispers loudly. “Shit-! Are you live??”

Joonghyuk can only blink. Lee Jihye and Han Soonyoung’s wheezing comes through his headset loud and clear, his chat moving at impressive speeds. He’s starting to wonder why he let someone who never learnt how to knock live with him. Dokja swallows as Joonghyuk’s expression shifts to something a lot more homicidal, forcing out a small “Welp, good luck!” before slamming the door shut.

Joonghyuk debates whether he should go after him or completely ignore what just happened and continue playing. He glances over at the “12th” at the corner of the screen.

Luckily for Dokja, he picks the latter.

Joonghyuk walks into the living room to properly greet Dokja after ending his stream. But he instead finds the man completely knocked out on the couch. Mouth open, snoring. Must've been a long day…

He quietly steps over, noting the half-finished plate of leftovers on the coffee table. He's glad the man has learnt enough self-preservation skills to have dinner before knocking out.

Joonghyuk sighs and lifts Dokja off the couch. Careful not to wake him, he leans him against his chest and walks them to their shared bedroom.

Chapter Text

It was stupid of him to make a bet with Han Sooyoung. Part of him believes she might’ve paid Dokja to walk in like that, sprouting stuff as distracting as a pet name. She never would’ve won against him if that hadn’t happened. But a bet is a bet and Joonghyuk must hold up his end of it.

“Oh stop whining,” he can practically hear Han Sooyoung roll her eyes. “It could’ve been much worse but I was nice .”

Joonghyuk frowns and glares at the oversaturated title screen surrounded by a cheesy amount of hearts and flowers. 

PLAY MY HEART <3

Click anywhere to start

Han Sooyoung, who has Joonghyuk’s stream open, is amusing his chat, “‘Why’s it all men?’ Chat, it wouldn't be a punishment if he enjoyed it.”

“I don’t enjoy this either way, actually.”

“Shut it and press start already.”

He sits through the opening animation with a sour expression, fighting the urge to roll his eyes at every weirdly designed character and their sensual introductions. He truly, could not give less of a shit until-

Panning from the legs up, starting from his black dress pants, then up to show off the character’s thin waist and semi-buttoned shirt before finally reaching his face. And suddenly, Yoo Joonghyuk realized why Han Sooyoung picked this specific dating simulator. 

The game camera angles up so the black-haired character stares down with a cunning smirk as his name is revealed. 

Kim Dae-hyun

“Is this some kind of joke?” Joonghyuk says flatly.

“Yeah, idiot. That’s kinda the whole point.” Is what she says, but he can hear in her voice that she knows .

He frowns as the opening ends and what he can assume is the tutorial begins. He lazily reads over the instructions, it's no different from any other dating sim so there's no point wasting time. 

The protagonist is a college sophomore who never got to experience love in high school, so their goal is to get a date by the end of their first year. Joonghyuk gets through the context and the scene opens to the protagonist at a house party. How cliché.

[Nameless Voice] - Did you come here alone?

[SupremeKing] please choose a dialogue option:

~ Yes… would you like to keep me company?

~ I've never been to a house party before… Could you show me how things work around here?

~ No.

Han Sooyoung sees Joonghyuk eyeing the last option, “It won't be fun if you don't get any romance points with any characters…”

Despite her words, Joonghyuk still picks ~No and lets the scene continue.

[Nameless Voice] - I see… I thought you might want some company.

A blond character with funky hair and a far too colorful outfit (that Joonghyuk remembers from the opening) enters the frame, along with a man with dark hair, who is randomly in military gear.

[Lee Hyunsung] - Looks like you got rejected again [Nirvana], you'll have to work on your flirting. * [Lee Hyunsung] turns to face SupremeKing .* I'll take him away, how's that sound?

Please choose a dialogue option:

~ Haha no problem. I was about to meet back with my friends anyway.

~ No. I'll leave instead.

~ Yes please. I think I'd like your company better.

“Joonghyuk don't you dare-”

[SupremeKing] - No. I'll leave instead.

“Wow you're really no fun.” Han Sooyoung sighs.

“The goal is to find a date, not flirt with every man the MC lays their eyes on.” Joonghyuk crosses his arms as the screen fades to black. A few descriptors pop up to indicate the MC is making their way upstairs.

“Bruh. The whole point of dating sims is to have it harem-like. You just rejected two of the five choices.”

“I have my reasons.”

“Uhhh huh.”

[SupremeKing] makes their way to the bathroom upstairs, but before they can reach it, they turn the corner and run into a tall stranger.

[Nameless Voice] - Oh sorry- are you okay?

Please choose a dialogue option:

~ Hey! Watch where you're €#@$^ going!!

~ I'm the one who's sorry! I wasn't looking.

~ My cheek hurts a bit… Could you kiss it better?

He can hear Han Sooyoung groan, “Oh please don't tell me you're gonna-”

[SupremeKing] - My cheek hurts a bit… Could you kiss it better?

“Holy shit… I didn't take you for this much of a simp.” Joonghyuk only smirks at her reaction. He wasn't going to suffer through this game without bringing her down with him.

On the screen, the black-haired character's face goes somewhat pink, paired with a surprised look. A small [+5 RP] pops up in the corner with a flowery animation and painfully bubbly font, indicating an increase in Romance Points. The character laughs softly.

[Kim Dae-hyun] - How forward… Let's start with introductions shall we? I'm Kim Dae-hyun. You?

Please select an option:

~ SupremeKing.

~ Your future partner.

~ Just someone looking for a bit of action at a party…

~ *Run away*

[SupremeKing] - SupremeKing.

[Kim Dae-hyun] - That's a nice name. For a second I was worried you were going to say “your future lover” or something… Anyway, how are you enjoying the party? I helped somewhat with organizing it.

[+2 RP]

The gamer continues the dialogue with near-perfect strategy, choosing all the options that would rack up RP. The scene ends after Kim Dae-hyun and the MC exchange phone numbers, and the party arc continues on.

“Are you seriously gonna reject everyone else?? You even got negative likability with Nirvana- I didn't even know the scale could go into the negatives…”

The first chapter [Party Hardy!] comes to an end, and the progress chart slides onto screen.

Kim Dae-hyun… LVL 4 (Boyfriend??) [+48 RP]

Lee Hyunsung… LVL 1 (Acquaintance) [+0 RP]

Nirvana… LVL -1 (Rival) [-10 RP]

…

Congratulations on completing [Party Hardy!] 

Click here to start Chapter 2

“You're doing it on purpose aren't you…” Han Sooyoung scowls, doing her best to ignore the begs for an explanation from the streamer's chat.

“I don't know what you're talking about.” Joonghyuk replies flatly. You reap what you sow, Han Sooyoung .

Chapter Text

It's nearly 3am, but Dokja stares intensely at his phone screen, squinting to see the words past the screen dimmer.

He's finally at the last few pages of the book he recently picked up. He was only supposed to read a chapter or two before going to bed, but then he realized how close he was to finishing it and… stayed up a bit longer than intended.

He lets out a sigh of relief realizing he's finished it, immediately closing his reading app to open Twitter. He doesn't post very often since the only people who follow are his friends, but he highly doubts the groupchat would like a notification at this ungodly hour. They'll see his post when they wake up.

Dokja reaches over to plug his phone in before turning to lie on his other side, taking a moment to appreciate his boyfriend's sleeping face. His brows still furrow even while resting. Dokja lifts a hand, gently rubbing between the other's eyebrows to hopefully remove some of the tension.

Joonghyuk stirs a bit, but stays asleep. He shifts closer to Dokja, wrapping an arm around his waist to pull him closer. Dokja closes his eyes, tiredness finally catching up to him.

“Dokja… were you on my account yesterday?” Joonghyuk asks while they eat breakfast, swiping away another notification.

Dokja hums as he swallows what's in his mouth. “Not that I know of. Why?”

The gamer leans back into his chair, poking the scrambled eggs with a fork. “I keep getting notifications saying Han Sooyoung and the others commented on-”

“OH SHIT-” The reader shoots up from his chair, hands slamming down on the table before desperately reaching for his own phone. The other barely reacts, simply giving him a confused look, seeming fairly laid back. Dokja on the other hand, continues to curse under his breath as he opens the social media app with shaky hands.

His heart drops low into his stomach.

“I fucked up.”

“Okay?”

“Like… real bad.”

Joonghyuk sighs and opens the app on his own device, clicking on his profile to check the damage.

Yoo Joonghyuk @SupremeKing

Just finished reading Boyfriend Material… gonna go have an existential crisis

Han Sooyoung @notAplagiarist

Smth ain’t right here

Uriel @DemonicJudgeOfFire

Congrats on coming out!!

Lee Jihye @#1inSeoulTrust

Finding out the Supreme King reads gay novels was NOT on this year’s bingo card

He reads it over before glancing back up at the panicked man in front of him, “I don't see what the big deal is? And seriously… 4am?”

Dokja pulls at his hair. “That book is gay as fuck! Shit… what are we gonna do…”

“That's simple. I'll just say my roommate was on my account, and that he only has access to it because sometimes I'm too busy to post.”

“Huh…” Dokja sits back down, crossing his arms. His boyfriend is suspiciously calm. “And here I thought you were gonna go all ‘ I'm not gay!! ’ on me again.”

“Sadly it's a bit too late to say that by now.”

“Sadly?”

“Yes, sadly.”

Dokja leans back in his chair, blinking up at the ceiling. “You better make that tweet soon. The longer you wait the more annoying things are gonna get.”

Joonghyuk sighs, taking a sip of his coffee. “Fine.”

Yoo Joonghyuk @SupremeKing

Roommate was logged in on my account.

Han Sooyoung @notAplagiarist

Nice save buddy

Uriel @DemonicJudgeOfFire

Congratulations on your roommate coming out!!

Yoo Sangha @SanghaQueen

Good thing you kept roommate-ssi anonymous…

Lee Jihye @#1inSeoulTrust

Ok so I can take that off the bingo card

Chapter Text

Joonghyuk has never been a fan of pets. They’re either too needy, too aggressive, and/or smell. He never had pets growing up other than a goldfish, and after it brutally died jumping into the filtration system, he swore to never own any more animals. 

Technically speaking, he’s kept true to that promise. But he forgot his boyfriend doesn’t have the same mentality.

“Kim Dokja. What’s in the box?” Joonghyuk crosses his arms, watching the suspect awkwardly kick off his work shoes while tightly holding a cardboard box, the bottom of it soaked from the light rain. He also notes the slight dampness of Dokja’s hair, which is a bit odd considering he brought an umbrella. 

The older man finally faces him after realizing he can’t take off his coat without freeing his hands. His smile is far too virtuous to be normal. “Joonghyuk-ah! Remember that conversation we had about a year ago at Han Sooyoung’s place where we were way too many drinks in and you mentioned possibly wanting kids in the future?”

“I thought you said you didn’t remember anything from that night?”

“That’s not the point.” He waves his hand dismissively, the other still holding the package, his upper arm firmly keeping the cardboard flaps closed.

Joonghyuk narrows his eyes. “Dokja do you have a fucking human child in that box?”

“Human? No.” Dokja kneels down in the doorway, carefully setting the box on the carpet before opening it. “Child? Yes.”

Joonghyuk’s eyes widen and he takes a step back, almost tripping over the flurry of white that shoots out of the crate and passes between his legs. He spins around, but the strange bright ball of fluff had already gone under the couch. He turns back to his partner, wordlessly giving him the death stare.

Dokja lifts his arms in surrender as he stands. “Listen- it was raining and the poor thing was out in the streets trying to cross a busy road. I’m not saying we should keep it, but it’ll stay with us until I can drop it off at a shelter. Okay?”

He narrows his eyes, searching for any falsehood in his words, sighing when he comes up with nothing. “Fine. But only tonight.”

Joonghyuk shifts his eyes to the couch where he spots a cute pink nose poking out shyly from underneath.

It’s true that Dokja had no intention of permanently adopting the kitten. Things just got a bit rowdy with work this past week and he’s been getting home too late to drop her off at the shelter. And he knows there is no way in hell Joonghyuk is getting close enough to transport her either. He avoids Biyoo like the plague (yes, he named the kitten), even going as far as to lock the poor thing in the guest room when it's time to feed her.

Dokja quietly locks the front door, getting home late from another day of overtime. He shrugs off his jacket and kicks off his shoes. A lamp in the corner of their living room illuminates it enough for Dokja to spot his partner sitting fast asleep on the couch, head lolling over his shoulder.

It’s also hard to miss the fuzz of white in the lap of his black sweatpants. Biyoo’s purrs get louder as he toes closer, head lifting up sluggishly to spare a glance at the new guest on the couch, sniffing in his direction, before snuggling back into her tail. To his surprise, Joonghyuk doesn’t move a muscle, breathing deeply, snoring almost as silent as Biyoo’s purring.

Dokja looks down at the hand sprawling over the small kitten’s back before smiling at his lover. “You’re such a terrible liar.”

“Get. OFF .” Joonghyuk pauses the game to pluck Biyoo off his desk and plop her onto the floor. It’s been two weeks since Dokja said he’d give her away. Joonghyuk’s already accepted that wasn’t going to happen. Really, he should’ve known the day he brought her home, or the day he named her, and when he came home with litter, food and toys, or when he brought her to the vet instead of the shelter, and when-

He can see his chat spamming emotes in his peripheral, clearly very amused by his predicament. Working from home while Dokja’s in the office means he’s the only one in the house Biyoo can torment. As he said; pets are either too needy, too aggressive, and/or smell. And they clearly got themselves one of the former. 

He can’t get a moment to himself anymore with this kitten constantly hovering around, following wherever he goes. Have you ever had to shower with an animal staring right into your soul? It’s WEIRD . Not to mention her habit of walking in front of his screen while he’s gaming. He can hear Han Sooyoung’s voice in his head saying “ Well just close the door, dumbass .” as if he hasn’t tried . This fucking cat figured out how to open doors. There’s no such thing as privacy in their house anymore. 

He can feel her blue abyssal eyes boring into his back when he resumes the game. He can see her behind him on the bed from his webcam, just sitting there, menacingly. 

After a few more uncomfortable minutes, he pauses again, whirling his chair around to glare back at her. The staring content only ended when Biyoo jumped off the bed, landing with a quiet thud before leaving the room.

Joonghyuk sighs loudly as he faces the screen again. “What a pain…”

Dokja laughs so hard he almost rolls off the bed, ‘YOU HAVE DIED’ written in a nice and big red font on Joonghyuk’s monitor. The man can only frown as he slowly lowers his gaze towards the heavy thing now lying across his keyboard and left hand. Today not being a streaming day is the only thing he’s thankful for. The last thing he needs is more content for those ‘Biyoo being a lil shit’ compilations. 

“This is all your fault, Kim Dokja.”

Dokja is clutching his stomach as he tries to calm down, he meets Joonghyuk’s eyes upside down, looking up while lying on his back. “Yeah yeah. I’ll take full responsibility if it means being able to watch you get bullied by someone a dozen times smaller.”

His genuine smile is enough for the gamer to forgive him, reluctantly. He turns back to the embarrassing screen and hears the other get up from the bed. His heart beats faster when Dokja’s arms wrap around his shoulders. Or so he thought that’s what was happening.

“Seriously..?” He scowls, watching Dokja reach out to pet Biyoo, purposely resting his chin on his shoulder.

“What’s wrong? Is someone jealous?” Dokja switches to that annoying childish voice when he directs his attention back to the cat. “Someone’s jealous isn’t that right? Yeaah jealous of an adorable cat like you~! Fuck! You’re so cute-!”

His petting gets a bit more aggressive and Biyoo indulges, turning onto her side to stretch out. Joonghyuk frowns at his boyfriend. It wasn't pleasant living with two overgrown rats. 

He freezes when Dokja rests a hand on his head, ruffling his hair.

“Biyoo might be needy, but it's pretty clear where she got that from.”

Joonghyuk rolls his eyes, ignoring the part of him trying to lean into Dokja's touch, lest he prove his point.

The older man leans in to leave a quick kiss on his cheek before pulling away entirely. “Anyway, I'm heading to bed. I had a long day.”

Joonghyuk watches as he crawls back under the sheets, shutting off the bedside lamp so the PC and monitor are the only source of light in the room. The gamer uses his un-sat-on hand to shut things down, slowly attempting to wiggle his left hand out from under Biyoo.

Perhaps this is something he can get used to, he thinks, looking back down at her almost smiling face before joining Dokja under the sheets.