Archive of Our Own ^beta

Taesan groaned as he blindly reached for his phone, which was blaring his daily alarm. Eyes still closed, he fumbled under his blanket, pillow, and plushies before finally snapping his eyes open, frustrated that he couldn't find his phone. He finally sat up, looking around, squinting at his surroundings before finally locating the source of the alarm. He threw off his blanket and let out a sigh before picking up his phone off the floor. He must've kicked it off his bed at some point during the night.

He plugged in his phone for a bit of extra battery before his shift. It was going to be a long day because, unfortunately, it was Monday. Taesan grabbed his towel and softly padded from his room to his bathroom, one hand under his shirt, another brushing his bright red hair out of his face. He squinted in disbelief at his ruffled hair from a long night’s sleep, two tufts of hair sticking out in a way that made it look like cat ears. He quickly smoothed them down before stepping into the shower.

Towel around his waist and feeling ten times more alive, he randomly selected a record from his shelf and carefully placed the needle on it. He hummed along to the familiar melodies as he picked out an outfit. He would always tell his friends that a life hack for picking an outfit quickly was to have an all black wardrobe, so anything can be mixed and matched.

Most times, it would actually take him longer to accessorize and do his makeup than any other step in his morning routine, but he had the earliest shift today, and he had to open the shop. Forgoing his usual eyeliner and necklaces, he slapped on his favourite studded leather bracelets and a couple of rings. “Mondays are meant to be comfortable…” Taesan mumbled to himself as he slipped on an oversized distressed band tee and a dark denim jacket over it. Lastly, he spritzed some of his favourite perfume on his neck and arms before leaving his apartment.

It has only been 5 months since he started living alone, but he thinks that it's one of the best decisions he has ever made. He knew that his parents loved and missed him, but they were simply too overbearing at times. And a little too conventionally traditional. He realised his parents were overprotective when he found out they sheltered him away from things that kids his age knew. It was tough for little Taesan when he felt disconnected and alienated from his only friends at that time.

When he first brought up not wanting to go to university, his mom gasped, and his dad said, “It’s because of that punk mentality, isn't it? How are you going to find a stable income and support yourself? I want you to be happy, son, but I want you to have a comfortable life too.”

Taesan internally sighed a little, thinking, “I’m emo, not punk.” With concern written all over his dad’s face, he tried to convince Taesan to reconsider, but that was all he had done in the past few years. He knew that there wasn’t anything out there for him aside from music. As long as he could find a job that could support his passion, that was all he needed. Thus began his employment at a Hot Topic, 2 hours away from his house with his parents. He just needed some space away from them while he learnt to be his own person outside of his home.

Luckily, as he thinks fate would have it, one of his closest friends, Sungho, told him that his grandmother was renting out an apartment for cheap near the mall where he was going to be interviewing for his current job position. She had lived alone for many years, simply preferring to have her own space, just like Taesan did. However, after a recent hip injury, Sungho’s parents finally managed to convince the stubborn Granny Min to allow them to look after her. The meet-up ended with her promising to deliver side dishes to both Sungho and Taesan often.

Taesan still calls his parents often, with the most recent phone call telling them that he got promoted to a manager despite his short time period of working there. His mom’s eyes lit up, telling him how proud she was of him and that she had been worrying sick. Taesan huffed a laugh, glad to at least make his parents feel at ease with how well he was actually doing by himself for the first time.

So yeah. That's the life that feels just nice to Taesan. Working a couple of weekdays and a weekend, leaving enough time for his music production and band activities.

Music played in his left earbud as he took his daily 15-minute walk to the BND mall. There were buses that would’ve gotten him to his destination in half the duration, but he was not a fan of squeezing in with the morning crowd, shoulders touching, exchanging breaths in the enclosed environment. The crunching of dried leaves under his boots could be heard through his right ear. Taesan looks up at the dim sky, pastel pink and blues ready to wake up the horizon. Yes, he was happy like this.

Taesan let out a sigh as the key to the shop was once again stuck mid-turn. It was janky, and if you were lucky, you would unlock it on the first try. If not, you had to jiggle it, wiggle it, then turn the key with the amount of force that presented the real possibility of it just breaking the key in half. But it worked.

Taesan sauntered in, dropping his bag in the closest staff locker to the door before switching on the lights and payment system. After this routine, he connected his phone to the store speakers, continuing the playlist he was listening to on the way here. Since it was still early, the majority of the shops had not opened yet, leading Taesan to turn down the volume of the speakers by half so as not to disturb the other store owners when the mall was still eerily quiet.

It’s uncanny, being in a place where you’re used to feeling the buzz of hundreds of people passing by, chattering, suddenly quiet. But Taesan enjoys the peace of it all. He relished the brief period of quiet before his co-workers came in, singing along to the lyrics he knew by heart.

Since it was the start of a new week, it was time for Taesan to switch up the layout of the merchandise in the window display. They typically changed it once a month, or whenever there was a new limited-time collection to be promoted. However, Taesan found the aspect of crafting a cohesive display relaxing and satisfying, and his boss loved that it kept things fresh every week.

As he was trying to figure out how to style the mannequin with two different types of belts on each hand, a figure walked right past the opposite side of the window where he was standing. He had a fluffy head of blonde hair that was longer than Taesan’s, and sparkly, kind brown eyes that crinkled when they made eye contact.. The stranger shyly smiled as a form of greeting, slightly bowing his head as he walked past the store. Taesan quirked an eyebrow at the back view of the boy who just walked past. He seemed to be around Taesan’s age.

“I’ve never seen him around here before. What store’s uniform is that?” He thought, trying to figure out if he recalled any stores that had a white button-up with a neat mint green collar as their attire, only to draw up blanks. Unbothered, Taesan shrugged and resumed fumbling between the two belts, taking a mental note to walk around during his lunch break to check out any new stores.

After 15 minutes of mixing and matching different merchandise, Taesan let out a huff of accomplishment, satisfied with the new display. He was mindlessly folding a few band tees that were out of place before one of his favourite coworkers and bandmate walked in. Call it dumb luck or divine forces, but Taesan managed to find not one but two bandmates from his job. Subsequently, he was also introduced to their music-obsessed friends, often hanging out to jam or write songs. Jooyeon yawned, not bothering to cover his mouth as he mumbled, “Good morning, boss…”

Taesan snickered, replying, “Good morning, Jooyeon. And I told you not to call me boss, you weirdo.” The long-haired boy merely shrugged, dumping his bag next to Taesan’s. With a hair tie between his teeth, Jooyeon said, “By the way, Gaon might be running late today, he said his gecko escaped its cage.” He started tying the top half of his hair into a bun.

“What? Again? Didn’t his gecko escape his cage like two weeks ago?”

“I know, he claims his gecko is just really smart. He even changed the tank setup or whatever, but alas… It longs for true freedom…”

Taesan snorted, remembering how frantic Gaon was the first time this happened. He had arrived at work with his shirt inside out, nearly on the verge of tears. Taesan had to make him a warm cup of hot chocolate while Jooyeon patted his back to calm him down. Luckily, about 30 minutes into his shift, his roommate, Jungsu, texted him that he had found the gecko in Gaon’s room, under a hoodie left on the floor. But luckily, this prepared the 2 boys to know where to look the next time, seeing as how much the pet liked to burrow in their clothes. Gaon and Jungsu were probably gingerly turning over any clothes or floor carpets in their apartment right now.

“S 'a good thing that he’s doing a Monday morning shift right now and we don’t need the manpower yet,” Taesan commented, looking out at the mall that was starting to wake up, with other shops switching on their lights and signboards.

“And that we have a chill boss who wouldn’t scold him for being late,” Jooyeon was referring to their actual boss this time, a widowed middle-aged lady who was definitely trouble in her younger years, if her unorthodox hairstyle and clothing were anything to go by. With her sides shades and gauged ears, she was definitely in the alternative scene before any of the boys were even born. None of the shop employees knew her actual name, but they just called her “Boss K” or “Miss K”. She drops by every once in a while to check up on the shop when she’s not busy with other outlets and when she does, she brings food for them. She smiles and coos that they remind her of herself when she was younger.

Soft thumping could be heard before their shop door swung open, with someone panting at the entrance. He had split-dye hair of pastel blue and pink, and wore more colours than Taesan and Jooyeon did. Between huffs, he managed out, “I’m not too late, am I?”

The corners of Taesan’s lips curled up, with a soft reply of, “Glad to see you alive, Gaon.”

“Nah, you’re good. I thought you would arrive later. So where was your gecko?” Jooyeon asked, setting a cardboard box down.

“He was in one of Jungsu’s slippers… He felt him in there when he was going to put them on to start the search.” Gaon giggled at the memory of Jungsu shrieking and flinching upon contact with something moving in his slipper. “I don’t know why he keeps wanting to escape and burrow into our things, though. He has plenty of hides in his tank.”

Taesan hummed, replying, “Maybe he just wants to be closer to you guys. Or he’s lonely? …Do geckos get lonely?”

The three of them fell into easy conversations while rearranging the accessories on the shelf or folding up crumpled clothes. An occasional customer would walk in, breaking their conversation with a rehearsed, “Welcome to Hot Topic!” But aside from that, it was indeed a rather peaceful morning as they expected. Before they knew it, it was lunchtime and their part-timer for the second half of the day, Giselle, arrived, so they could go out and eat. She was a third-year university student and picked up shifts whenever her school schedule allowed. Goan stayed behind as well before he had to leave for his evening classes.

Taesan turned to Jooyeon, tilting his head towards the door. “Let’s go.”

As they walked out of the shop discussing what to eat, a bright white shop a few stores down caught Taesan’s eye. He nudged Jooyeon, asking, “Hey, that’s a new shop, isn’t it?”

Jooeyon squinted a little before lighting up, “Oh yeah! It looks like a frozen yogurt shop! Let’s stop by for dessert after lunch!”

“Sure, I’ve been craving something sweet lately,” Taesan easily agreed.

They ended up eating at their favourite pasta spot, ordering a takeaway portion for Gaon too. “That was so good, it always hits the spot,” Jooyeon patted his stomach, contented with his meal.

Taesan smiled lightly, asking, “Still got space for dessert?”

Jooyeon immediately sat up straight. “Always.”

They paid for the meal, with Jooyeon holding the boxed pasta. As they approached the new frozen yogurt store, he noticed there were two employees standing behind the counter. One of them was a boy with a smile so bright it was the first thing that Taesan noticed. He had cute snaggletooths that made him look young and boyish. He was laughing at something the other boy said, his body turning limp and leaning on him as he tried to catch his breath. The pillar in question was the guy who smiled at Taesan that morning. Eyes in crescent moons, talking in a smile as he added to whatever joke they were sharing, making the other laugh even harder.

“I saw him this morning,” Taesan told Jooyeon, hands in his pockets. “The blonde one. He walked past our store.”

“Wow, he totally looks like a model man. Is this a marketing strat?”

Taesan chuckled a bit, pushing open the glass door. “I think it’s working, though.”

“-Oh! Welcome!” The one who was in a laughing fit finally caught his breath, noticing the two walk in.

“Welcome,” The blonde one smiled, voice deep and warm.

“Are you guys ready to order?” The chestnut head asked. Taesan noticed that aside from the button-up he saw him in this morning, the two of them were also wearing a mint green apron and a nametag which matched the colour of the collar. The giggly one’s name was “Woonhak”, and the other was named “Leehan”.

He quickly flitted his eyes from their name tags back to the boy. “Hi, I would like a medium-sized cup in the original flavour, please.”

“Okay, sure! Coming right up!” Woonhak stuck out his tongue in concentration as he carefully rotated the cup so it would form the perfect swirl.

“Leehan! Look at this! Major improvement, right?” Woonhak passed the cup to Leehan, who was ready to add the toppings. “Yeah, good job, you picked it up really fast.” He assured the younger, before turning his full attention to Taesan. He tilted his head and did the same smile he saw this morning, but this time, it reached his eyes. “Hey.”

“Hi,” Taesan replied. He could hear Jooyeon in the back asking Woonhak whether the original flavour or the strawberry flavour was better.

“What toppings would you like? You can pick three, including the sauces,” Leehan gestured vaguely to the array of gummies, fruits and cereal.

“Uhm… Strawberry, marshmallow and Nutella sauce, please.”

Leehan smiled, loading the toppings on the swirl with practised ease. “Didn’t peg you for someone who had a sweet tooth,” he casually commented, drizzling the Nutella sauce over the sweet treat.

Taesan had a feeling he knew why, but he still smirked a little, asking, “Yeah? Why’s that?”

Leehan laughed lightly, saying, “You seem like you would only eat black licorice.”

Taesan snorted, amused. “Wait till you see me in my usual get-up. Today’s already one of my mellower looks.”

Leehan smiled, passing the decorated cup to Taesan. The cup was cold, but his hands were warm. “I’ll look forward to seeing that.”

With Jooyeon finishing up his order, he turned around and said goodbye. “I’ll see you around,” he said as the welcome bell jingled, the glass door closing once again.

When they got back to the shop, Gaon immediately noticed their frozen yogurts. “What! Since when did we have frozen yogurt in this mall?”

“I think it's newly opened, it's only a couple of stores down from ours,” Jooyeon replied, spoon still in his mouth.

“We can go with you to get it again if you want,” Taesan said without looking up, focused on poking the strawberries into the cup so they don't fall out. This Leehan guy was pretty generous with the toppings, it seemed.

“How about getting it on Friday? A little treat before the weekend?” Gaon suggested, collecting his pasta from Jooyeon with a little “thank you”.

“Sure! Good idea, we should ask Jungsu since he will be in the area. Then we can go to band practice afterwards together!”

-

Tuesday went by without much trouble, except for a rude customer who demanded a refund for something that was clearly used. As usual, Taesan deployed the best strategy for this: Sending Gaon. His naturally mellow temperament made him good at dealing with short-tempered guests. They always seemed to calm down a little when speaking to Gaon. And every time, Taesan would award him with a lollipop from his candy stash at work.

-

It was halfway through Wednesday when a familiar figure in white walked into the store. His eyes were wide and sparkly while he scanned the store, mouth opened in a small “O”. This was definitely the most interesting thing that had happened the whole day. He clicked his tongue in amusement, approaching him.

“Welcome to Hot Topic,” Taesan said evenly, scanning Leehan up and down. He did look a little funny, with his innocent, wide eyes, dressed in all white in a store full of… the opposite.

“Hey,” Leehan replied, his easy smile greeting him again. Likewise, he took in Taesan’s outfit too. Today he was wearing his usual eye makeup, with a tighter cropped shirt and his favourite black ripped jeans. He seemed pleased at the sight.

“... Didn’t peg you for someone who would walk into a store like this,” Taesan quizzed, mirroring the conversation they had two days ago.

The blonde chuckled, the familiar statement warming him up. Reflecting what Taesan said that day, he replied, “Yeah? Why’s that?”

“Hmm, not sure. You seem like you would only wear anything soft and white,” Taesan smirked, enjoying the little game they were playing. “But seriously, though, I’m surprised you would come here.”

“Uhm, me too, honestly. I guess I was just curious because I’ve never seen a store like this back in my hometown. I’m from Busan,” he replied, a little shyly.

Taesan nodded a little, now realizing that he did have a slight accent after hearing him talk more. “Is it just you and that Woonhak guy working again today?”

Leehan looked up, surprise written on his face. “Woah, yeah. How do you know his name?” Taesan chuckled, pointing at the mint green name tag.

“Huh. I guess these do work. My mom and dad insisted we wear name tags to “form a connection” with our customers. Didn’t think anyone would actually read these,” Leehan replied, a wondrous expression on his face.

“Your mom and dad?” Taesan asked.

“Yeah, my parents own the frozen yogurt store. They originally opened one in Busan and expanded it here. Since I’m here for school, I can help out with this store,” Leehan explained.

Taesan hummed. He thinks he must’ve eaten a lot of free frozen yogurt growing up. The two of them started walking around the empty store, with Taesan introducing certain franchises or limited-time goods. Leehan seemed genuinely fascinated by everything, especially when they got to the rack of keychains. “Woah, this one is so cute,” he reached out to a plush black cat keychain with red eyes and a red bandana. He picked it off the rack and held it next to Taesan. “It kinda looks like you.”

Taesan scoffed, “You’re just saying that because it has the same colour palette as me.”

“I’m buying this,” Leehan said decisively, walking towards the cashier without waiting for the redhead to catch up.

“Hi, is that all?” Gaon popped up from behind the cashier, totally not snacking.

“Yep, thanks,” Leehan replied, paying for the keychain with the swipe of a card.

Taesan leaned against the counter beside him, watching him. “You’re surprisingly decisive.”

“I am,” Leehan affirmed, receiving the keychain back from Gaon. He immediately clipped it on his belt buckle. His eyes rose back to Taesan’s. “Why should I wait when I already know what I want?”

Taesan’s heart stuttered for a split second, pleasantly surprised that they may have more in common than he had previously assumed. He shrugged, saying, “You’re right. Enjoy your purchase, Leehan.”

Leehan replied, slowly walking backwards out of the store, “Thanks. I should get back to Woonhak before he starts sulking. See you around.” He waved a little before closing the door behind him.

Crunching on a chip, Gaon chewed a few more times before asking, “You know him?”

“Yeah, he works at that frozen yogurt place that Jooyeon and I went to the other day.”

“Oh, nice! He seems like a chill guy. Looking forward to trying their yogurt. Was it good?”

“Yea, it was sweet.”

-

“Hey guys!” Jungsu waved, entering the store. He was carrying a large black case, which contained an electric keyboard.

“Jungsu!” Jooyeon and Gaon chorused, happy to see their bandmate. Taesan poked his head out from behind the storeroom, waving with his hand that wasn’t holding a bundle of hangers. “Give me 5 more minutes before I close up!” He shouted before ducking back into the storage room.

The other three packed up anything that was out of place, and fetched their bags and Taesan’s, along with their instruments from the staff room. 2 guitars and another electric keyboard later, they waited as Taesan locked up the shop.

“Oh! No way, did you see that? I locked it on the first try,” Taesan spun around, shocked that the key turned without stuttering.

“It is a good omen, I think,” Gaon squinted at the lock, nodding wistfully.

After keeping the key safely, he retrieved his keyboard from Jooyeon. Jungsu’s case had a cute little fox on the zipper, whilst Taesan’s case was covered in all sorts of stickers. Most collected from Hot Topic, if he’s being honest.

The four of them made their way to the frozen yogurt store, instruments in hand.

The bell of the pristine white shop jingled, causing 2 heads to look up.

“Welcome.”

“Hi! Welcome! Oh, it's you guys again!” Woonhak chirped. For some reason, seeing him put Taesan in a good mood. He reminded him a bit of Gaon in that aspect.

Gaon stepped forward and scanned the selection of toppings, delighted by the wide variety. “Woah! Awesome!”

Woonhak seemed pleased by his excitement, motioning to Leehan and bragging, “Yeah, his parents own this store.”

Leehan let out an exasperated exhale, a little embarrassed by the sudden proclamation in front of a new crowd. “...Yupp… indeed…” He responded, popping the “P”.

The other three crowded around Leehan, bombarding him with questions about what it was like to have parents who owned a frozen yogurt store. Taesan thinks he might have even heard a, “So did you get to eat a lot of free frozen yogurt growing up?” Which was a good question, in his book.

Meanwhile, he scanned the menu and realized they had a lot more flavours than he initially noticed. “Hmm… Is the melon flavour good?” He asked Woonhak, who was on standby with an empty cup in hand.

“That one’s actually his favourite,” motioning to Leehan, “but I think the strawberry flavour’s the best! Both are good though!”

“I’ll get the melon flavour today, then. I’ll try the strawberry next time,” Taesan smiled at Woonhak, finding him cute for his cheery demeanour.

“Okay! Melon coming right up. By the way, I love your style! And your hair! I’ve dyed my hair a dark red before but never that bright,” Woonhak gushed, before starting the machine.

Taesan ran his hand through his hair as a form of habit, replying, “Thanks, I actually dyed it myself. I could show you what brand I use, if you want.”

“Really?! That’ll be so sick!” Woonhak turned around, accidentally jerking the cup. “Oops! Sorry, I kinda messed up the swirl…”

“Haha, that’s alright, it's going to end up a swirl in my stomach anyway,” Taesan responded, good-naturedly. In response, Woonhak burst out in boisterous laughter.

“I like you, what’s your name? Can we be friends?”

“My name is Taesan. And sure, I don’t see why not.”

Woonhak punched the air with his arm that wasn’t holding the cup.

Taesan smiled, thinking Leehan must be pretty lucky to hang around this guy every day. “Hey, if you like my style, you should stop by our store sometime. It's the all black one a few doors down. I’ll give you a friend discount.”

“I will! I’ve been meaning to check it out!” Woonhak flashed a big smile before finally passing the cup over to Leehan and taking Gaon’s order.

“This is my favourite flav- What happened to his perfect swirl?” Leehan questioned, surprised to see the frozen yogurt half broken and a little floppy in the middle.

Taesan chuckled, “I think he got a little excited.”

“So, Taesan, what toppings would you like today?”

Taesan lifted an eyebrow, hearing his name from Leehan’s mouth for the first time. “Eavesdropping?”

Leehan shrugged, “I was going to ask you for your name that day, but I forgot. Sorry.” he ended off with an easy smile, knowing Taesan wouldn’t mind.

“I’ll get whatever your favourite toppings are.”

“Mmm, good choice.” He took out a new spoon before asking, “I noticed you guys all have instruments. Do you play in a band?” Leehan began scooping rock melons, cut into neat squares in the cup.

“Melon on melon?”

“Yup. It’s like a guaranteed good combo.”

“Okay… If the son of the owners insists. And yeah, we’re a band. There are more of us, but we will meet them later at the studio.”

Leehan nodded, the sounds of spoon scraping on containers stretched on before he spoke again, “I was first, you know?”

“Sorry?”

“I wanted to be your friend first.” Leehan clarified, keeping his eyes on scooping the next topping.

“Oh.” A moment of silence. “Why?”

“I dunno, just a feeling that we would get along?” Leehan packed the last topping neatly, sticking the spoon in the cup. He looked up, smiling with his eyes again, “And I think you’re cute.”

Before Taesan could respond, Jooyeon and Gaon cooed, slapping each other on the shoulder, whispering, “Did you hear that?!?! They’re totally flirting!!!” Which might as well have been said at full volume, considering how everyone heard it. Jungsu poked the two of them in their stomachs, reprimanding them, “Stop being embarrassing! You’re gonna make someone uncomfortable!”

Taesan looked at his beloved bandmates with a deadpan expression, but the tips of his ears were red, and he knew it. He grumbled as he paid for his yogurt, thanking Leehan. As he collected his cup, his fingers brushed against the latter’s warm hands once again. Looking up at the pair of doe eyes that never left his face, Taesan said, “I’ll see you around.”

When they got to band practice, Gaon reported what happened to their drummer, Hueningkai, which led to another round of teasing. Taesan groaned and dropped his head on his keyboard, the keyboard smash ringing throughout the studio.

-

It was a Saturday morning, and Taesan met up with Sungho and Jaehyun for a day out before the duo had to retreat into the gloomy depths of their dorms to study for midterms. Their first stop was at a cafe near their university, which they frequented. Jaehyun would not stop harping on about how it had the most delicious mochi waffles he had ever had, so here they were. He and Jaehyun shared the waffle with 2 scoops of ice cream while Sungho had a vanilla frappe.

“I feel like I’ve been eating too many desserts recently,” Taesan whined, but still savouring the big bite of cold ice cream and warm waffle. The mochi waffle was really good.

Sungho stole the bite off of Jaehyun’s fork before asking, “What else have you had recently?”

“A new frozen yogurt store opened in my mall recently, and I went there twice this week.”

“Wow… If a frozen yogurt store opened near me, I would be going there every day…” Jaehyun pondered out loud, his fork now stolen and being used by Sungho. “Is it good?”

“Yeah, they have a lot of flavours and different toppings. The employees there are cute, too.”

Hearing this, Jaehyun sat up straight. “Cute as in Aww! Cute! Or cute as in cute cute?”

Taesan smirked, “Both? One for each employee.”

“Woah, I wanna see,” Sungho said before stuffing a big bite of their dessert into his mouth.

“Dude, stop stealing my waffle! You said you didn’t want it earlier!” Jaehyun lamented. But Taesan knew he didn’t mind, and he would give it all to Sungho if he asked.

“I just wanted one bite!” Sungho defended, pretending to be scandalized.

Taesan laughed at his best friends’ usual banter before retelling them the interaction he had in the frozen yogurt shop, finishing it off with, “I can bring you guys there after your midterm exams. I’m not going there for a third time this week.”

“Okay! Deal!” Sungho agreed easily.

“Ugh, don’t even get me started on midterms. I’ve already bought two bags of coffee and a carton of energy drinks for the inevitable hell that awaits me.” Taesan patted Jaehyun’s shoulder sympathetically, remembering the days of heavy eyebags caused by sleep deprivation he and Sungho went through during last year’s final exam week.

“I’ll bring you guys food when I’m free. Don’t want my two uni best friends to starve to death and then die of sleep deprivation a second time.”

“Awwww Taesannie you’re so sweet~~~” Jaehyun cooed, wiggling in his seat and acting cute.

“Yup, sweet like this ice cream,” Sungho added, stealing another bite of dessert.

Taesan scrunched his nose, choosing to pretend like he didn't hear all of that.

Their second stop was at a nice street corner full of vintage thrift stores that was tucked away by local restaurants. They often came here when they were all still in high school, because there were tons of different styles all for affordable, student-wallet-friendly prices. Once in a while, they still walked around this street since the fashion pieces are unique, and the feeling of accomplishment after finding a cool piece was rewarding.

Flipping through the racks, Taesan found a denim vest, a little frayed at the bottom with metal buttons that were in the shape of a smiley face. “Woonhak would definitely like this,” Taesan thought. He paused, hesitant about whether or not it would be too much.

“Hey, Sungho, remember how the chestnut frozen yogurt guy said he liked my style and wanted to try it out? I think this would suit him well, but I don't know if that's too much. Do you think I’ll be overstepping?” Taesan asked, with his lower lip under his teeth.

Sungho looked at the vest, thinking, “Hmm… No, I don't think so. If anything, I’m sure he would be really happy! You said he wanted to be your friend, right?” He smiled reassuringly, “And it’s not a pricey gift either, I think it's very kind of you to think of him.”

Taesan relaxed, tension dissipating from his shoulders. “Okay,” he said simply, paying for the vest.

Jaehyun popped in, each hand holding a leather jacket. “Won’t the other guy get jealous? The one who called you cute~? I know I would if I were him.” Not even waiting for a reply, he turned to Sungho, showing him the two jackets in his hands. “Sungho dear, which one do you think would suit me better?”

Sungho squinted, trying to tell the difference between the two. “They literally look the same.”

“No, they’re not! This one has a cooler zipper, and this one’s collar is longer,” Jaehyun rebutted, moving the jackets closer to each other. Sungho rolled his eyes and said that it wouldn’t matter, and no one was going to be able to tell the difference anyway.

Taesan sighed, turning away from the two of them bickering. “A gift for Leehan, huh…” He mumbled under his breath. Jaehyun was right. It would be kind of weird to only get a gift for Woonhak and not anything for Leehan when he could tell he meant it when he said he wanted to be friends with him too.

…And not to mention, he made the first move by calling him cute. Taesan rubbed his temples, willing himself not to think about it before his ears turned red. He walked past a table with trinkets laid out across a velvet cloth. What would Leehan like?

He mindlessly touched the array of watches, necklaces, and other accessories before pausing on a few leather bracelets. These were totally his style, and it seemed like something that would be sold in Hot Topic. All of them had unique designs that were different.

“...This suits him,” Taesan thought, picking up a brown bracelet with a braided design. It was thinner than the rest and had a little star charm dangling from the buckle. Beside the brown one was a black one, which looked more like a cuff than a bracelet. It had smooth metal studs along the band, in the shape of the star that seemed to be similar to the brown one. He tried it on, pleased that it matched his bracelet stack perfectly. “I hope this isn’t too much either.” He thought to himself, paying for the two bracelets.

In the end, Jaehyun did end up buying one of the leather jackets, although Taesan couldn’t tell you which of the two he got. To end their day, the three made their way to a karaoke bar nearby, a place so familiar to them that the owner of the establishment always brings them free snacks. She would always say how they had grown taller since the last time she saw them. The three of them would always come here after school when they weren’t in the mood to study (which was most of the time).

It was also here that Taesan truly discovered his love for singing, and where his dream of being in a band was born.

After having such a blast with Jaehyun and Sungho, he felt a little reluctant to bid them farewell. Jaehyun clung to his waist, just as unwilling to leave. “No… I don't want to go…” Sungho sighed before prying a flailing Jaehyun off of Taesan.

“I had a lot of fun today, Taesan. We promise to hang out again after hell week,” Sungho said, with Jaehyun now clinging onto him instead.

“Save me, Taesan…” He reached out dramatically while being dragged away by Sungho.

Taesan waved as he watched the two of them board the bus to their dorms. He smiled as he turned around, making his way home.

-

It was now the next Friday, and it had been almost a full week since the last time he saw the frozen yogurt boys. A bunch of new inventory hit their store at the start of the week, keeping them busy with reorganizing and setting up new layouts for the novelty merchandise. Taesan had brought the gifts he bought for them on Monday, storing them in his staff locker, telling himself that he would pass them to them when he was less occupied with work. But really, it was an easy excuse for his second-guessing if this gesture of his was overstepping.

Before Taesan could circle back on the entire argument in his head again, his thoughts stopped abruptly as he saw who had just walked in through their door.

“Miss K? I didn’t know you were coming today,” Taesan greeted her with a wide smile.

“Oh, Taesan! It’s good to see you! How are you doing? I know there was a big wave of new products which came in this week, and I wanted to come sooner to check up on you guys, but I was so busy with the admin work for the new store that we opened in the other mall,” the lady explained, groaning a little as she recounted her nightmarish week.

“Haha, don’t worry, it was manageable. You can take a look around the store and let me know if there’s anything you would like to change with the layout.”

“Sure thing, thank you, dear. I also bear gifts with me! There was an insanely good deal at the pizza joint downstairs, so I got some for you guys. I might’ve bought too much, so please do bring it home, yeah?” Miss K set the two large bags of pizzas behind the counter.

With that, she turned around to gather Giselle and Jooyeon to come eat together. Like Taesan, they were delighted to see her on this surprise visit.

Taesan began taking the pizza boxes out of the bag, to realize Miss K was not exaggerating when she said she ordered too much. It felt like he was grabbing pizza boxes out of Doraemon’s pouch, never-ending. His mouth parted in awe at the six boxes of pizza laid out on the counter.

“Wow!!! This looks like a pizza party! Or a pizza buffet!” Jooyeon exclaimed upon seeing the impressive display of the different flavours across the table.

“Tell me about it…” Giselle whispered, slowly walking over to the other two, almost like she was being hypnotized.

The four of them happily munched away at the crispy pizza slices, taking advantage of a time when the shop was empty. They caught up with Miss K, listening to the new updates and projects she was working on about the new mall. Giselle finished eating first and packed 2 slices to bring home, which was met with complaints by the other three.

“Why are you only taking two slices home?? You should be taking an entire pizza!” Miss K shouted, voice slightly muffled by the pizza in her mouth.

“I’m sorry guys, I don’t have a roommate to help me eat these, AND my fridge broke down yesterday, so I can’t store them overnight… Jooyeon and Taesan, I’m counting on you!” She winked, shooting finger guns as she tried to escape before Miss K dragged her back and managed to stuff two more slices in her takeaway box.

Taesan dragged his eyes over the mountain of pizza slices still left. “I don’t need to do any math to tell you that there’s any way I’m going to tank the damage and bring home this much pizza. I don’t have a roommate either.” His eyes shot back to Jooyeon, who was also realizing how many leftovers they had.

“Okay, I’ll try to bring home at least this much, but Junhan doesn’t like pizza all that much. Is there anyone else we can give it to?” Jooyeon replied, pointing at two boxes of half-eaten pizza, indicating the amount he was going to bring home.

“How about our neighbours? Ugh, definitely not that fake-ass boujee fashion store 2 doors down though. Have you ever seen the way they look at me whenever I walk past them? God forbid I wear anything but the depressing colours of white and beige,” Miss K rolled her eyes.

They giggled, amused by the silent beef she had with a store that was the polar opposite of theirs.

“Oh! We can give it to the guys at the frozen yogurt store!” Jooyeon exclaimed.

“There’s a frozen yogurt store now?” Miss K asked, with a look of surprise on her face.

“Yeah, it’s new. Just opened one or two weeks ago,” Taesan replied. “Jooyeon and I tried it, and it’s pretty good.”

Miss K hummed. “I see! Alright, Taesan, go be a dear and deplete our pizza inventory, please.” She packed up the 2 boxes of untouched pizza into the empty bag. “Meanwhile, I’ll check the new merchandise and let you know if there are any changes to be made when you get back.”

Taesan shrugged and said okay. “I guess I’ll pass them the stuff I bought, too. Kill two birds with one stone,” he thought.

He sighed as he walked out of his store with two bags in his hands, slightly nervous about the upcoming interaction.

A few strides later, he was at the glass door. He could see Woonhak sitting on a seat meant for customers, back turned to him as his arms moved rapidly, seemingly recounting a rather exciting story. Leehan was behind the counter, body leaning comfortably against the wall with his arms crossed. He had a pair of glasses resting on his head, acting as a hairband. He was giggling at whatever Woonhak was saying before his eyes flitted up, seeing Taesan through the glass window. His eyes widened slightly, surprised at the sudden sight of Taesan after not seeing him for a week.

Taesan pushed open the door, the bell jingle making Woonhak jolt up, chanting his usual greeting, “Oh welc- Taesan!!!”

“Haha, hi guys. Sorry Woonhak, didn't mean to scare you,” Taesan laughed, seeing how easily startled the younger one was. He hesitated for a split second before he stated why he was here. “My boss just dropped by and bought us way too much pizza, so she sent me here to 'deplete our pizza inventory’ according to her.” He did air quotes with his fingers, bags crinkling as he moved.

“No way! Am I dreaming?” Woonhak bounced over, excitement clearly emanating from his body.

“Wow, are you close with your boss?” Leehan walked over with a hand in his pocket, peeking at the pizza over Woonhak’s shoulder. Taesan watched his blonde hair fall back over his eyes as he took off the pair of glasses perched on his head. He tucked it neatly before hanging it on his apron pocket.

“Yeah, she’s really sweet and has… a youthful energy to her. She’s cool. Taught me a lot,” He replied, smiling as he watched Woonhak take a big bite of the pizza, closing his eyes and furrowing his brows as he let out a satisfied hum. What a cutie.

“Uhm, by the way, I got you guys small gifts from a market I went to last week,” Taesan said evenly, pulling them out from the other bag he was holding.

“Wha-” Woonhak mumbled, cheeks stuffed. His eyes sparkled at the piece of clothing that was handed to him by Taesan. “Thif is sho shick!” He shot up, holding it out like an autographed baseball jersey. He flipped it over, left and right, admiring all the little details of it. He quickly swallowed the bite of pizza with a little difficulty before he squealed, “Thank you! I love it!” He barreled into Taesan for the quickest hug he has ever had, before letting go and gloating about his new gift to Leehan.

“I saw it and was reminded of you, since you mentioned liking my style,” Taesan explained.

In response to Woonhak buzzing around him, Leehan slung his right arm around the younger, trapping him in a side hug. He leaned in to Taesan, speaking lowly with a pout, “Where’s mine?”

Taesan wordlessly grabbed Leehan’s left wrist and turned his palm upwards. Then, he placed the bracelet in his empty palm. Leehan let out a barely audible gasp, fingers closing around the bracelet while his eyes snapped up to meet Taesan’s. Taesan subconsciously swallowed, holding eye contact while schooling his expression to a carefully morphed blankness. Leehan’s sparkly eyes darted around his face, as if trying to see right through his soul.

At this point, Woonhak had wriggled free and skipped into their staff room, presumably to try on the vest. Leehan broke eye contact first, looking down at his gift. He gingerly turned the bracelet around, touching the little star charm.

“I thought it would look good on you.” Taesan rolled up his long sleeve to expose the newest addition to his bracelet stack. He moved his wrist right next to Leehan’s bracelet he was holding. “We kinda match.”

As if without meaning to, Leehan delicately ran his finger over the star-shaped studs on Taesan’s black bracelet. “Help me put it on,” he said softly.

Taesan picked the bracelet from Leehan’s hand and loosened it before slipping it on his wrist. He pulled at the strings, tightening them, careful not to brush his hands against his arm. He didn’t want to think about how intimate this felt. “Is this okay? Not too tight?” When Taesan looked up at Leehan, he was looking right at him instead of the bracelet.

“Yeah, it’s just right,” Leehan replied, not taking his eyes off of him.

“Okay. Good,” Taesan simply replied, taking a step back out of the bubble of tension. He dusted his hands together and said, “I should get back to work now. Got something to discuss with my boss.”

For a second, Leehan remained still, eyes watching him like an owl, before he suddenly reached out and grabbed Taesan’s wrist. “Give me your number.”

Surprised, Taesan’s lips parted slightly. He stood there, frozen, before he laughed, tension easing out of his body again. He held out his free hand, signalling for Leehan to pass him his phone. Leehan fished out his phone from his back pocket, unlocking it before passing it to him.

Taesan raised an eyebrow at him, commenting, “I can type faster with both hands free, you know?” Leehan looked down and realized he was still holding on to the redhead’s wrist. He immediately recoiled, muttering out a “Sorry”. He brushed his hair back and looked away, flustered. Taesan smirked at his reaction before quickly punching in his number under the newly created contact.

Taesan turned to the staff room, speaking a little louder, “Woonhak, I’m going back to work now, I’ll see you around!” To which the chestnut head popped out of the door frame, beaming at him. “Bye Taesan! Thanks again!”

Taesan smiled, waving back. Before he opened the glass door to leave, he turned to Leehan and said softly, “Text me.” The bell jingled once again as his silhouette disappeared.

Even after he was far out of sight, Leehan remained rooted, staring at the door.

Woonhak finally bounced back out after keeping the denim vest carefully folded in his bag. “What’s up with you? Did he get you anything?”

Leehan finally unfroze, slowly lifting his arm and pointing at the new decoration fitted around his wrist. “I am going to make him my boyfriend.”

Woonhak gasped loudly before whooping. “I approve!”

Hours later, Taesan was finally done with his shift. He couldn’t wait to go home, shower and wind down with a craft project he’s been meaning to do. He stuck in an earbud, about to play a song on his walk home, when he saw a notification on his phone from an unknown number, simply saying: “taesan”. He squinted at the ominous message of his name in mild confusion before he remembered he had given his number to someone today. He let out an incredulous laugh before replying.

Contact saved as “leehan”

leehan: taesan

taesan: leehan

He was halfway through the first song he was listening to when he heard a ping, breaking the melody of the song.

leehan: hey :))))) :)) :)))))))) :))))))

taesan: hi

taesan: that was a pretty ominous message u started with

leehan: but you responded in the same way

taesan: yea

taesan: r u done with work?

leehan: no, my shifts are usually till 8pm :((

taesan: why r u on ur phone then

leehan: cause the cute guy whose number I asked for texted me back

leehan: [gif]

Taesan brought his face closer to his phone screen, trying to decipher what exactly he was looking at. It turned out to be a gif of a few close-up pictures of fish, with fading transitions and sparkles in between them.

Replying to [gif]

taesan: what does this mean

leehan: that's me

leehan: he   he

taesan: … ok

taesan: text me after u're done w work, I don't want to disturb u

leehan: okay

leehan: woonhak is begging me to give him your number but I told him he has to get it himself

leehan: can't believe he thinks he can freeload your contact from me when I worked so hard to get it

taesan: lol just give it to him don't be mean

leehan: this isn't fair

leehan: fine

leehan: I'll text u later

Taesan smiled a little to himself, resuming his playlist before pocketing his phone.

Freshly showered and smelling like his favourite body wash, Taesan sat down on the living room floor, an array of paints and brushes laid out on a big piece of newspaper.

In the evenings, Taesan usually opted for songs that were slower paced, feeling the invisible knots in his brain coming undone. He hummed along to the soft music that drifted out from his room where his record player was.

The project he wanted to do was to customize a pair of sneakers. He had already sketched out the design he wanted, and the only thing left was to execute it. To start off, he spray painted the entire shoe black. He coughed a little, not expecting the fumes to be so strong. While waiting for the layer to dry, he squeezed out some yellow and white paint. He started with the left shoe, painting a yellow circle for a smiley face design he prepared.

Just as he was about to add in the details, his phone screen lit up with a notification. With his ass still planted on the floor, he craned his neck over to read the text message. The corners of his lips quirked up, seeing it was indeed who he expected it to be.

leehan: i’m a free man now ^_^

He slid up his phone screen with his pinky, not wanting to get leather paint on it. With a bit of difficulty, he typed out a short message using his knuckles.

taesan: sry wait i got pain t on my hands rn

Before he could reread the message he just sent, his phone vibrated, and the only thing on the screen was “Incoming call from leehan”.  Taesan stared at the screen for a few seconds, seriously considering declining the call because he wasn't a big fan of phone calls (except for his parents), let alone receiving one from someone he wasn't close to… yet. Even Jaehyun only had a 60% chance of getting Taesan to answer his calls.

With a sigh, he quickly made up his mind to just accept it. He wasn’t oblivious. If anything, he was overly self-aware with every thought and action that went on in his body. He knew he was interested in Leehan, and he didn’t want to self-sabotage it by pushing him away. Pressing the green button with his pinky, he answered the call and put it on speaker.

“Hey,” the voice resonated from the speakers. Taesan didn’t know it was possible for his voice to sound even deeper.

“Hi,” Taesan replied, not quite knowing what to say.

“Were you going to decline my call?” Leehan asked, smile in his voice.

Taesan paused, paintbrush midair. “How the hell did you know that?” He could hear the sounds of buses and cars driving by, guessing that Leehan had just left work and was on the way home now.

“Because the call rang for a few seconds before you picked up,” Leehan chuckled, seemingly not at all affected by Taesan’s admission, instead finding it amusing.

“You didn’t somehow plant a spybot in my brain, right?” Taesan scoffed, resuming his DIY.

“Nope. Don’t need that when I can already read your mind with my natural gift of telepathy,” Leehan responded without missing a beat. “What are you doing?”

“Customizing a pair of sneakers,” Taesan stated, moving on to the right shoe. Remembering that conversations are supposed to be a back-and-forth interaction, he asked the same question back, “What about you, what are you doing?”

“I’m taking a walk to a pet shop. I want to buy a piece of driftwood for my fish tank.”

“What fish do you have?”

Leehan shared the species of fishes he had, even naming both the common and scientific names. The only one Taesan could remember was “corydoras”, it being repeated so much that it actually managed to stick inside his brain. He has no idea what it looked like, but he assumed it had to be a little bit special for Leehan to like it so much.

“Anyway, are you playing music from your phone?” Leehan asked, wrapping up his fish QNA session.

“Nah, I’m playing a record from the turntable in my room. I’m surprised the phone picked it up.”

“Oh, sick, I’ve always wanted a record player… It’s kinda pricey, so I wasn’t sure if it would've been a worthy investment,” Leehan replied, wonder in his voice.

“I’m probably biased, but I wouldn’t even consider that an investment. It’s like a necessity to me.” Taesan said in a serious tone. “Money can buy happiness in the form of records.”

“You’re a pretty convincing guy,” the voice laughed.

Taesan huffed, adding on, “It’s not just about the music quality, although that is a big part. For me, it’s about filling up the space in my apartment, music sinking into my bones. I don’t know how to explain it, it just makes it feel more… more real?” He gestured vaguely with his hands, trying to explain the intangible feeling to the best of his abilities. He sighed, “Ugh, I don’t know. It just makes me feel more alive somehow. I bet I sound crazy right now.”

There was a moment of silence on the call, a lump forming in Taesan’s throat. He shared too much, didn’t he? It felt like he just shipped a delicate piece of his soul far out to sea, not knowing if it would ever return. He bit his lower lip, slightly embarrassed to share something vulnerable, uncharacteristically.

On the other side of the phone, Leehan paused, tongue darting out against his lips. His heart pounded, and he felt like he was the crazy one for swooning so hard over hearing a guy talk about his love for music.

He broke the silence, carefully picking his words, “...No. If anything, you sound passionate. Which is admirable. I like it.”

Taesan silently let out an exhale, shoulders sagging. Absent-mindedly, he gently dragged his knuckle along his lip that he had just bitten. “...Thanks, I guess.” He swallowed before asking, “If you want, you can come over and listen to my records.”

Leehan’s loud gasp could be heard through the phone, before he purred, clearly pleased with the invitation, “Oh my god, at least take me out to dinner first, Taesan. That was practically on the same level as a marriage proposal.”

Taesan’s stomach coiled upon hearing his name. He couldn’t help but laugh a little at Leehan’s ending comment, especially since he did agree with it a little. “Sorry, got a bit ahead of myself, huh.” He crumpled up the stained newspaper into a ball, making a clean shot for this dustbin. Smiling at the good throw, he asked, “You free this Sunday?”

This time, Leehan’s gasp wasn’t audible on the phone. He gripped his phone tighter, desperately trying to hold his emotions together so he could sound not nearly as affected as he felt.

“Yeah, I am.” Leehan fidgeted with his bag strap while waiting for other’s response.

“Okay. It’s a date then. I have to wash my hands now, but I’ll text you.” Taesan replied, rustling heard in the background as he stood up.

“Okay. Bye,” Leehan breathed out.

“Bye, Leehan.”

Click

Leehan stood unmoving on the sidewalk before burying his face in his hands. “Woonhak’s not gonna believe this,” Leehan whispered to himself. He made his remaining walk to the pet store with a hand over his mouth because he couldn’t stop giggling and smiling to himself every few seconds.

With his biggest plushie tucked under his chin, Taesan flopped onto his bed, hesitating before clicking into his group chat with Sungho and Jaehyun.

Group: the powerpufdf girls

Created by “jaehyun”

taekitty: i have a date on sunday with the cute guy from the frozen yogurt store

myungmyung: NO WAYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY

yeppi: o m  g

taekitty: yup

myungmyung: SO WHATS HIS NAME?!?!?!? WE ARE AT THE KNOWING THE NAME STAGE RIGHT???

taekitty: leehan

yeppi: omg omg omg

myungmyung: DO U HAVE PHOTOS?? I NEED A FACE CLAIM I NEED TO KNOW HOW HE LOOKS LIKE SO  I CAN IMAGINE THE 2 OF U BEING CUTE IN MY HEAD

taekitty: no, u weirdo

yeppi: UGHH curse the stupid midterm exams I want to come over and see the guy

Replying to “taekitty”:

myungmyung: no as in u don’t have a photo or no as in u don’t want me to imagine the 2 of u being cute in my head

yeppi: both dude

taekitty: both

taekitty: …when did u change my nickname again

You changed your name “taekitty” to “TS”

myungmyung changed your name to “taekitty”

taekitty: someone like u should not have admin powers to abuse

-

“Riwoo, I have a question,” Leehan’s voice was muffled, his face resting in his arms as he gazed at his fish tank.

“What’s up?” The copper-haired older replied, not taking his eyes off of his Nintendo.

“Do you think opposites attract?”

Riwoo, his roommate, paused his game, looking up with a contemplative hum. “I think so, especially in the beginning stages of getting to know someone. But as you get to know them, there’s a chance that your morals and beliefs aren’t aligned, it makes it more difficult to actually get along with each other past the stage of initial attraction.” He shrugged, ending it off with, “Well, that’s just what I think.”

“Okay…” Leehan replied, a beat of silence before he groaned, planting his face on the table.

“Why, what’s up?” Riwoo put away his Nintendo, his focus solely on Leehan now.

“I’m kind of worried about that. You know, the guy I have a date with tomorrow? I’m scared we’re too different. Or I’m not like- cool enough for him. Because he’s really cool.”

Riwoo softened a little, finding the younger’s worries to be cute. “Leehan, don’t worry about that, you’re already perfect as you are. And that’s the purpose of a date, isn’t it? To get to know the other person better, and to see if you get along well.”

Leehan hummed, worries slowly fleeting away. He looked up and smiled at Riwoo, expressing his gratitude with his million-eye smile, which the latter returned with a smile of his own, nose scrunching. At times like this, Leehan felt so much fondness for the older. Riwoo was always an unwavering pillar of support throughout the rough period of time when Leehan was still getting used to Seoul after moving from Busan all alone. He found much comfort in being around Riwoo, grateful that he managed to score the jackpot of getting the best roommate ever.

“Anyway, wanna play Fifa with me?” Riwoo asked, already setting it up on the TV.

“You bet.”

-

Taesan knocked on the unit three doors down from the escalator, the dorm building already familiar from his many visits there. With an insulated bag full of home-cooked food, he waited for his friends to open the door. He could hear shuffling and muffled voices before Sungho opened the door, hoodie pulled over his head, and a piece of sticky note full of incomprehensible scribbles stuck on his hair. Taesan wordlessly plucked it off and handed it to him.

“Oh, my knight in shining armor, Han Taesan.” Sungho dramatically held the door open for the younger, revealing a haggard Jaehyun lying on the floor, papers strewn about everywhere.

“Why do you guys never use the tables in your room…?” Taesan asked incredulously, setting down the bag he brought on the only empty spot he could find, which was a small side table next to the couch.

“The table in my room is too small, I need to see everything laid out for me to remember it better,” Jaehyun mumbled, still not looking up from his supposed organized mess.

“And I tend to focus better when I see Jaehyun studying hard. Parallel play or whatever.” Sungho waved it away, helping Taesan unpack the meals.

“I didn’t make anything fancy, just some kimchi fried rice,” Taesan announced before going to their kitchen to fetch the utensils.

Finally, Jaehyun’s head snapped up, light returning to his eyes. “Oh, you’re the best! I love your kimchi fried rice!” He quickly bookmarked his page before bouncing over to help clear up some space on the dining table.

“I also brought some fruit tea because I have a feeling neither of you has been drinking anything other than coffee and energy drinks.” Taesan pulled out a few bottles from his bag, pouring the tea into cups of ice.

Jaehyun practically melted and fused his body with Taesans, being way too chummy for Taesan’s liking. “You’re the best, Taesanie! I love you…” Jaehyun made the most obnoxious smooching sounds known to man-kind, effectively making the other flinch so hard he almost spilled the drinks.

“Ugh… get off of me… It’s whatever, I just bought extra because there was a buy one get one deal,” he grumbled, trying to push the clingy Jaehyun off with his elbow.

After the three of them finally settled down, they ate as they caught each other up on what had happened in the past week. Some drama about a guy who tried to plagiarize a song, and a lecturer who was on Jaehyun’s ass about his bad handwriting.

“Oh, right! Taesan, you have a date tomorrow don’t you? Are you excited?” Jaehyun exclaims, suddenly remembering the most exciting thing to have happened out of the three of them.

Taesan hummed, replying, “Hmm… not really?”

“What the heck, what do you mean by ‘Not Really’? Even I’m excited for you. You’ve not been on a date in like, forever,” Jaehyun whined, disappointed with the lackluster reaction.

“You’re excited because you’re way too nosy about Taesan’s life, man,” Sungho chimed in.

Taesan huffed a laugh, agreeing with Sungho. He continued, “I’m not excited because I don’t know him yet. We’ll see how it goes tomorrow.” He took an unbothered sip of his tea, leaving it at that. Jaehyun had no choice but to sulk a little at how quickly he wrapped up this conversation.

Once they were done eating, Sungho and Jaehyun immediately cleared the dishes, forbidding Taesan to even lift a finger after he so graciously brought them food. Taesan stretched, yawning before asking, “Sungho, can I take a nap in your room? Kinda sleepy.”

Sungho’s voice could be heard from the kitchen over the running water, “Of course! Do you need me to wake you up later?”

“Yeah, in like an hour, please. Got rehearsals and a performance later tonight,” Taesan yelled back, already making his way to their bedrooms. Jaehyun’s bed was more comfortable since it was filled with plushies just like Taesan’s, but his room wasn’t. There were boxes and clean laundry everywhere, making the space feel cluttered, whereas Sungho’s room was organized and spacious.

Silently, Taesan went into Jaehyun's room first and plucked the biggest plushie off his bed before making his way to Sungho’s. Taesan enjoyed living alone; he really did. But the feeling of falling asleep in a safe space where he knew he wasn't alone was pretty nice too. With that thought, he quickly drifted off to sleep.

-

After his performance the night before, Taesan woke up with his entire body sore as usual. Standing and performing for an hour straight was always taxing on both his body and his soul. He typically liked to sleep in the day after, but today he had a rather… important schedule to prepare for. He groaned, bones popping as he stretched out of bed.

He took a long, warm shower, only stepping out after his fingers started to prune. Towel wrapped around his waist, he stood in front of his closet, deciding what to wear. He ran his fingers along his hangers before settling on his favourite leather jacket. It had a slightly slimmer cut compared to the rest of his oversized outerwear. He tossed the lucky selected jacket of the day onto his bed, busying himself with finding an outfit to match the leather.

A bit of rustling later, he picked out a slightly cropped black T-shirt with a pair of black vintage-washed denim jeans. He hummed, looking at the outfit laid on his bed, satisfied. Next, he slipped on his usual bracelet stack, and stood in front of the mirror deciding if he wanted to wear any makeup. Typically, he only wore eyeliner for work or performances, but he remembered how Leehan seemed to like his… usual style. He finished up his makeup with the slightest bit of silver eyeshadow, the type that only glints under dim lighting when you really look at it. Scanning his outfit once more, he fluffed up his hair a little with his hands before finally stepping out of the house.

Even though Taesan was 10 minutes early, Leehan was already there when he arrived at their agreed-upon spot. The blonde was wearing a loose flannel jacket over a white shirt, top tucked into a pair of baggy jeans, accentuating his waist. Taesan already knew he had a small waist from the way Leehan wore his apron at work, but seeing it like this outside of his work uniform was… nice. A victorious smirk spread across his face as he noticed the bracelet he had given him sitting nicely on his wrist. Leehan didn’t take it off.

As he slowly approached, Leehan’s eyes finally landed on the bright ball of red in the distance. His face immediately lit up with a smile, a small wave greeting Taesan.

“Hi,” Taesan said, the corners of his lips lifting into something genuine and soft.

“Hey,” Leehan replied, smile never leaving his face. “So where are we going? You never told me.”

“You’ll see. I think you will like it. But before that, let’s go eat?” Taesan tilted his head, indicating for Leehan to follow him.

The blonde nodded, falling into pace with the other. Hands tucked into his pockets, he said quietly, “You look good today.” He stared straight ahead, refusing to look at Taesan to see his reaction. 

“Only today?” Taesan smirked, staring at Leehan’s side profile. He had thick lashes and a pretty nose.

“Yup, only today,” Leehan replied, bumping his shoulders with Taesan as a rebuttal.

Taesan laughed, hand covering his mouth. “I’m just teasing, thank you. You look really nice today, too.” And he meant it. Just walking around with Leehan made him feel some type of way. He was clearly really good-looking and witty. Knowing that he, out of everyone, is on a date with such a catch made Taesan feel proud, and a little possessive. He quickly waived those feelings away, telling himself he must be overthinking this a little too much for the first date.

After a short walk, they arrived at a Japanese restaurant located in the quieter part of town, having to wind through a few alleys to get there. They sat down in a corner booth, made cosy by the warm lights and beautiful interior design.

“Woah, it’s so pretty here,” Leehan mused, taking in the decorations. Taesan swears that every light in the restaurant was reflected in Leehan’s eyes; they were so sparkly, like a snowglobe full of glitter.

“I’m glad you like it,” Taesan responded, placing the menu in front of Leehan. Even the menu was beautiful, the hardcover neatly embossed with the restaurant’s logo. Leehan flipped through the menu slowly whilst the other set up a set of cutlery for each of them. After a beat, he closed the menu, deciding to leave it up to Taesan to order for him. The redhead pouted in concentration, eyebrows furrowed as he scanned through the menu, serious about picking a good recommendation for Leehan. That’s when he heard the shutter of a camera. Looking up, he saw a bashful Leehan with his phone held up.

“Oops,” he said, not looking sorry at all. He flipped the phone to show Taesan the picture he just took. “It’s a nice photo though. Can I post it?” It showed only half of Taesan’s face, partially out of frame, and partially covered by the menu. His bright red hair was on display, along with a small hint of a frown he got when he was focusing on deciding on what to order for Leehan. It was a nice picture, especially when the background itself was already beautiful enough to snap a photo of.

“Sure, I don’t mind,” Taesan shrugged.

“What’s your username? So I can tag you.”

“Was that just a ploy for you to get my Instagram?”

Leehan handed his phone to Taesan for a second time, this time to key in his username instead of his number. “It’s an effective ploy though, isn’t it?” His eyes twinkled with mischief although his smile was gentle.

Taesan huffed out a laugh, frankly a little hooked on the way Leehan got him wrapped around his finger. “Yeah, it is.” The bits of banter, the push and pull… it felt magnetic and fun.

Right after thanking the waitress for taking down their order, Leehan did nothing short of announcing that he was going to look through Taesan’s feed.

“Right now?? In front of me???”

“Yup, you get to have a live reaction, isn’t that awesome?”

“No, not awesome. It’s embarrassing,” Taesan buried his face in his hands, flashes of embarrassing photos he posted on a whim haunting him. He peeked through his fingers, not wanting to see someone look at his photos, but still deathly curious to know what Leehan thought of them. He saw a few variations of different expressions on Leehan’s face before he groaned, not being able to take it anymore.

He stood up and slid in the seat right next to Leehan, needing to know what the other was looking at. “Oh my god, are you starting from the bottom?” Taesan asked, a little mortified. These photos were from at least two years ago, back when he was still in school. Leehan just laughed, delighted at seeing the usually composed Taesan get flustered.

Taesan could feel the warmth radiating off of him, basking in the intimate way he now knew what Leehan’s perfume smelled like.

“Woah, were you in a dance club?” Leehan’s attention snapped back to his phone when he saw a group photo of him with Sungho and Jaehyun in coordinated outfits. Their hair was a little out of place here and there, slightly damp with sweat. The three of them were smiling widely at the camera, flower bouquets in hand. Well, Taesan’s smile couldn’t exactly be seen since it was covered with the flowers, but Leehan could tell he was grinning from how much his eyes crinkled in the photo.

“Yeah, I was, only cause these two begged me to,” Taesan pointed at the two others in the photo. He chuckled, continuing, “Actually, I told them that our mall has a newly opened frozen yogurt store and they’ve been dying to try it. I promised to bring them after their midterm exams.”

Leehan melted a little. “That’s so sweet that you guys are still close after graduation.”

“It’s more like it’s impossible to escape from them,” Taesan rolled his eyes, but affection was still clear in his voice. Of course, he wasn’t going to include the part where he delivered home-cooked food to their house just yesterday out of concern for their health.

Leehan smiled, scrolling along a few other posts before he paused, frozen in place. “Woah.” It was a photo of Taesan mid-song, heavy in eye makeup and hair tousled from the performance. There was a slight sheen of sweat on his collarbones, and his hair colour was black with a streak of blonde all around.

“Ugh, stop, I can’t do this anymore,” Taesan’s hand covered the screen, caging Leehan’s fingers along with it.

“Why? You look really hot,” Leehan replied, not even bothering to hide his true thoughts when he was dazed from being attacked by such an insane photo of him.

“That was my first ever band performance… It was a few months ago and it reminds me of how inexperienced I was back then.” Taesan clenched his teeth, outwardly cringing. “And stop complimenting me, I have a daily limit and you have already reached it.” He deadpanned, eyes a little crazed, and ears a little red.

Leehan mused, not bothering to move his hands away from under Taesan’s, “But that just means you improved a lot, right? Could you ever invite me to one of your performances?” He tensed, almost feeling like he could feel Taesan's pulse through the warmth of his palm.

Taesan finally retracted his hand, fidgeting with his bracelets as he thought it over. “Yeah. I can. If you want to come.” He fixed Leehan with a look, as if trying to read if he was being serious. “Do you?”

“Of course, are you kidding me? It would be an honor,” Leehan replied, seemingly having more to say but holding himself back.

Taesan relaxed, appeased at Leehan’s reaction. Just then, their food came, and Taesan slid back to his seat opposite Leehan's.

When Leehan took his first bite, his eyes widened, which Taesan took as a good sign. Taesan noticed that he ate mindfully, taking the smallest bites of food he's seen anyone take. He thought it was really cute.

Their conversation flowed easily, exchanging stories about anything and everything. School, hobbies, family, friends.

“So, where to next?” Leehan asked, standing closer to Taesan than he had before the meal. At this point, the sun had already set, and the peaceful blanket of the night sky slowly settling in.

“It's nearby. I don't really know how to describe it either, you'll just have to see,” Taesan vaguely replied, piquing Leehan's curiosity.

As they walked, their hands brushed against each other, occasionally shoulders bumping. Neither made a move to distance themselves further apart.

“We're here,” Taesan stopped right outside a quaint little store (?), outside decorated with potted flowers. “You'll see what I mean when we go in.”

He pushed open the door, holding it for Leehan. When he walked in, it felt like he got transported into a magical pocket of a time from the past. It smelled of coffee, and was filled with bookshelves full of yellowed papers, and walls lined with vintage band posters and record covers. A soft jazz melody was playing, adding to the ambience of the whole place.

The clinking of glasses could be heard, catching Leehan’s attention to the small cafe near the record player. Right in the corner, there were a few tables and most notably, a lovely fish tank on one of them.

“I hope you have space for dessert,” Taesan smiled, shyly.

They sat down at the table right beside the fish tank, and ordered two coffees and a slice of cake to share. Leehan silently took in the environment that seemed right out of a dream. It was a mix of a library, a cafe, and a homey little hidden gem.

“I feel like a little mouse,” he said, wonder in his voice.

Taesan giggled, “I hope that's a good thing.”

“It is. How did you even find this place?”

Taesan slid down in his chair a little, making himself comfortable. “My dad used to bring me here on the weekends when I was younger. Introduced me to records. That's how I got into music.”

Leehan's eyes darted all around the store before finally landing on the fish tank.

He brought his fingers to the glass, pointing at the small fish darting across the water. “Those are Neon Tetras, I had them when I was in Busan,” He spoke almost in a whisper. Taesan rested his head in the crook of his arm, head tilted to watch Leehan.

“That one is a half moon Betta fish, you can tell by the tail because it spreads a hundred and eighty degrees.” Taesan’s eyes followed where Leehan was tracing, locating the bright blue fish with a fanned tail. He hummed in acknowledgement, more fascinated by how Leehan knew all of this.

Leehan gasped, fingers now pointing at the bottom of the tank. “These are my favourite! Oh, wow, they're so cute, mine are a different type.” He quickly whipped out his phone, carefully zooming in to take photos of the fish. Taesan’s fingers twitched, wanting to take a photo too, but not just of the fish. He quickly snapped a photo of Leehan, a fluff of blonde hair and a fish tank in sight. The latter was too engrossed to notice.

Taesan pocketed his phone before asking, “Are those Corydoras?”

Leehan's head snapped up, eyes wide and glittery once again. “W- How did you know?”

“You said they were your favourite when you called me that day, so I just made a guess.” He shrugged, acting like it wasn't a big deal. Before Leehan could think of anything to say in response to that, an older gentleman wearing a cream sweater served them their coffees and cake. He seemed to be friendly with Taesan, exchanging small talk and patting his shoulder.

The entire time, Leehan's eyes were fixed on the redhead. Taesan gulped, a little shy from the weighted look Leehan was giving him in his peripheral.

“What’re you thinking about?” Taesan asked, noticing that Leehan was still silent, looking at him. He poked the straws for both their coffees before offering him a taste. “You should try mine too, by the way. It's really good.”

“It’s nothing,” Leehan brushed it off, taking a sip. He let out a satisfied hum, the delicious mix of sweet and bitter coating his taste buds. “This is really good,” he affirmed, sliding his coffee back to him, before trying his own. As expected, it was just as good.

Taesan smirked, taking a long sip from his straw, feeling proud that all his plans had been a hit so far. It was satisfying, seeing his eyes light up at things that made him happy. He wants to do it more, he thinks.

They stayed and chatted long after they finished their drinks and dessert, growing closer every second. They finally got up when it was close to closing time, with Taesan going out of his way to say goodbye to the friendly man who served them earlier.

They walked side by side in silence, enjoying the cool night breeze. Taesan spoke first, “Are you working tomorrow?”

“Yeah, are you?”

“I am.”

“Okay.” Leehan smiled, thinking about how lucky he is to be working just a few stores down from Taesan. “Good.”

And when they parted ways, neither of them said goodbye, because they knew there was an unspoken promise of seeing each other again tomorrow.

13 unread messages

myungmyung: taesannn

myungmyung: how was your date!!!!!!!!

yeppi: yes we would like a full breakdown please

myungmyung: did u guys kisszzz >3

myungmyung: taesan tsaesna taesan taesan

myungmyung: han taeeee san Han TAesan

myungmyung: omg what if they're smashing right now

yeppi: YOU are the reason why he doesn't tell us anything

myungmyung: hey man that was a reasonable conclusion to draw from the current situation at hand

yeppi: god forbid a guy goes on a date and doesn't reply to his messages

myungmyung: :(

myungmyung: … I know ure thinking the same thing

yeppi: ok but at least I have the decency to not say it out loud?!?

^

Replying to myungmyung: omg what if they're smashing right now

taekitty: dude…

myungmyung: TAESANNN!!!!!

yeppi: omg tell us everything

myungmyung: so did u guys smash

taekitty: … im going to leave

Later that night, with his hair damp and a towel on his shoulder, Leehan's phone pinged with a notification.

“@giantmountain tagged you in a story”

It was the photo Taesan had taken at the vintage cafe. He smiled, flipping over in his bed as he gazed at the screen.

-

Over the course of the next few weeks, the two of them danced around one another, popping in during lunch breaks at either shops whenever they were free. Because of this, Taesan also grew much closer to Woonhak, greatly enjoying his company and energy whenever he was around. Jooyeon and Gaon also became friendly with the familiar face, always trying to sell off Taesan’s baby photos for a free frozen yogurt.

Taesan’s attraction towards Leehan steadily grew, bit by bit. He preened every time he managed to make Leehan laugh. He liked how he always spoke kindly and softly. He liked how he had a silent air of confidence that made him do everything without any hesitation. He liked how much softer he made him feel, like he was gently covering his spiked edges with his warm hands, as if they weren’t sharp at all.

It was Friday, and Woonhak had asked Leehan and Taesan to go to the arcade with him. It was located in the basement of the mall, with bright lights and machines spanning across the entire floor. The last time Taesan was there was a few months ago when Gaon had an obsession with a fishing game, and dragged him along with. In premise, it was kind of lame, you just sat there, staring at this big screen on a table, reeling in digital fish with a toy rod, but it was surprisingly addictive. The two of them played till their knuckles formed blisters from how fast they were reeling in the catch.

Taesan sat at the corner of one of the seats of the frozen yogurt store, idly enjoying a strawberry yogurt while waiting for Leehan and Woonhak to finish their shifts. He popped the spoon out of his mouth before remembering something he needed to tell them.

“Oh, by the way, my band’s opening for an event next Saturday if you guys wanna come. It’s not like the bars we usually perform at, so Woonhak can come too.” He stirred the melted yogurt at the bottom of his cup. “It might be a little… loud though, not sure if you guys will like it.”

“WHAT! Are you kidding me?! Of course I’ll come! I would even sneak into a bar if it really came down to it!” Woonhak exclaimed with boundless energy as always.

“Please don’t do that,” Leehan replied, a little mortified.

“Okay, I’ll send you both the details for it then,” Taesan bit the plastic spoon, texting the event information to the two of them.

Before long, the clock struck eight, and the three of them packed up and made their way to the arcade. They started with easier games as a warm-up, playing Crossy Road and ball-throwing games. Their volume and laughter increased as they squeezed into a dark booth, screaming at the zombies in the VR headsets. Leehan couldn’t help but gasp for air from how hard he was laughing at the other two. Surprisingly, Taesan was really bad at it, along with Woonhak flinching and yelling a futile “GET AWAY FROM ME!!”  at every zombie that came too close. It ended with Leehan setting a new high score in the system.

Shrugging off the VR headset in a clumsy motion, Woonhak asked, “No, seriously, Leehan, how are you so good at this? You have to teach me how!”

Taesan chuckled, gently sweeping the strands of brown hair that were plastered on the youngest’s forehead. “Yeah, are you secretly a pro gamer or something? That was insane,” Taesan commented, thoroughly impressed. This arcade was by no means unpopular, so setting a new high score was a legendary feat.

Leehan shrugged noncommittedly, replying that back home in Busan, the arcade he frequented was much, much smaller, so there wasn’t much else to do but to get good at the few games that were there. “Shooting games weren’t my favourite, though. The best one was this fishing game where you had to use a toy rod to-”

“-To reel in the fish? Like on the screen table, right?” Taesan cut in, excited that possibly, Leehan too had a liking for the lame fishing game that took over his life for a short period of time.

Leehan’s eyes widened, gasping, “No way, does this arcade have it?”

This must be fate. Taesan smirked, “Follow me.” He put his arm around a confused Woonhak’s shoulder, dragging him along while leading the way. The two chatted ahead about the game, with a quip from Woonhak that said something along the lines of a fishing game sounding lame. Leehan pouted, undecided on who to give his silent stink eye to. Taesan, who seemed a little too friendly with Woonhak, or Woonhak, who seemed to like Taesan a lot. Was he going to lose his title of being his favourite hyung? He let out a small sigh, trailing after them.

Woonhak sat down on the short side of the table, with Taesan behind him, explaining while pointing at the different game features on the screen. “Okayyy… Seems pretty easy?” Woonhak squinted, fiddling with the rod.

“It is easy, but you have to be lucky too.” Taesan dragged out two stools on the longer side of the table, patting the chair beside him for Leehan to sit. Taesan leaned in closer to Leehan, speaking softer since he didn't have to shout over the game sound effects, “I’ll have you know, I’m pretty good at this. I played it till I had blisters once.”

To this, Leehan raised an eyebrow, unshaken. “Well, as a seasoned player, I wore plasters on my fingers before I played so I wouldn't get blisters. Are you sure you want to challenge me, Taesan?”

Taesan’s eyes flashed with the promise of a challenge, competitive spirit flickering to life. “How about this? The loser owes the winner a favor.”

“Fine.” Leehan unfolded his glasses that were hanging on his shirt collar and pushed them up against his hair, so his long hair wouldn’t get in the way. Seeing him get serious, Taesan huffed, rolling up his sleeves.

This is how the game worked. After a few minutes of regular fish swimming about, a boss level would appear, spawning huge fish and other marine animals that would earn you a lot of money if you managed to catch one. However, they were much more difficult to reel in, which is where the frantic reeling at the speed of light comes into play. The better fish you caught, the more money you made, which was an indicator of your success. And right now, the youngest was irrevocably sweeping them with his in-game currency reaching three digits.

“WAIT I’M ACTUALLY GOATED!!!” Woonhak yelled, stool long abandoned in favor of standing. He claimed it "gave him a better fishing posture”, whatever that meant. He jumped and whooped as another giant octopus made its way into his basket, earning him coins that further widened his lead with Taesan and Leehan.

“How the hell are you so good at this?! Is this just beginner’s luck, or do I have to start fishing while standing too..?” Taesan whined, one hand in his hair. It was absolutely ridiculous, the way Woonhak was dominating their game right now.

Leehan was just as stunned, in awe at how well he was doing. He sighed, “And you were the one calling this game lame earlier. No fair…”

Woonhak’s cheekbones and shoulders rose, arrogance rolling out in waves. “Ah, I’m just too good. Should I become a professional fisherman?” He teased, the two older boys huffing and rolling their eyes dramatically at his gloating.

Just then, Woonhak checked his phone, practically jumping. “Oh, crap! It’s almost curfew time! I have to go!” Leehan and Taesan checked the time, both surprised at how late it had gotten as well. Woonhak swung his bag over his shoulders, waving to the both of them, yelling a goodbye as he walked out of the arcade. In the blink of an eye, he disappeared behind the myriad of colourful lights and loud machines.

Taesan smiled at the clumsy silhouette of Wonnhak getting smaller and smaller.

“...So, wanna play one round of DDR before we leave?” Leehan suggested, looking at their average scores compared to the much higher number Woonhak left behind.

“Yup. I’m gonna pretend Woonhak didn’t just wipe the floor with us,” Taesan responded, lightly holding onto Leehan’s sleeve and heading towards the Dance Dance Revolution machines without sparing a second glance at the scoreboard.

After weaving through a bunch of coin pusher machines, they arrived at a slightly less cramped corner of the arcade where a few sets of DDR machines were located.

“Are you good at DDR?” Taesan asked Leehan, scrolling through the song library.

Leehan shrugged, replying, “I guess. Was way better than my friends, at least.” His eyes flickered over to the song Taesan selected, freezing. He had selected the hardest difficulty on one of the fastest songs in the library.

“No way, I haven't played this in ages! I’m totally rusty!” Leehan pointed to the screen displaying the confirmation for the song selected. “The last time I did anything remotely physical was a month ago when my roommate dragged me to attend a free Zumba session in the gym near our apartment!”

“I haven’t played in ages either.” Taesan stretched a little before pausing. His cat-like grin appeared once again. “Is our bet still on?” There was a different energy about him now.

Leehan bit his lip, hesitance obvious on his face. “You’re not going to make me do something crazy, right?”

“I don’t know, depends on if I actually win or not,” Taesan replied lazily, gesturing for Leehan to step up on the machine as well. His eyes glinted as he watched Leehan reluctantly make his way onto the machine.

Leehan sighed, stepping on the board, hands gripping the bar behind him. The countdown began, numbers flashing bright on the screen. Music blasted from the speakers, a mixture of song melody and shouts from both of them filling up the air. Taesan’s eyes narrowed as he fully concentrated on the screen in front of him. It was far more difficult than he remembered. This brought him back to the good old days when Jaehyun would wipe the floor with him. In retaliation, he practised every weekend, dancing till every step was muscle memory.

Every time Leehan got a step that was anything but perfect, he could hear him wince and suck in a sharp inhale. Albeit only a few, they both knew every single mistake was going to count.

The moment the song ended, the two of them groaned, turning pliant, leaning against the red bars behind them. Both panting, they stared at the screen in silent anticipation of the score.

Three A’s flashed on Taesan’s side of the screen, with Leehan’s displaying two. Taesan got a perfect score.

Leehan groaned into his hands and slid down, head tilted up against the railing, frustrated at the close loss.

Taesan whooped, celebrating his win. Still lightly panting, he towered over Leehan, who was still catching his breath as well. “Can I check in that favor right now?” He inhaled deeply, trying to even out his breathing. He felt a dull want, looking at a flustered Leehan, greedy tendrils crawling up the insides of his ribs. Hanging out with Leehan was fun. He could keep up and keep him on his toes. It always felt like a game, and Taesan loved to play.

Leehan peeked up from between his fingers, taking in the sight of an out-of-breath Taesan, looking down at him. “Yeah.” He replied, a little spaced out.

Taesan straightened up, smiling. “Come over. To my house,” he stated, more like a demand than a favor. He looked at Leehan, eyes bright with no sense of hesitation at all.

They stared at each other for a few seconds before Leehan processed what the other had asked of him.

He sputtered, “Like- right now?”

Taesan tilted his head. “Yeah, right now. I already took you out for dinner, didn’t I? And I have something to give you anyway.” He offered his hand to Leehan, who was gazing up at him with his big, round eyes. Taesan’s stomach flipped at how the neon lights from the arcade made it seem like there were galaxies in them.

Leehan swallowed, replying, “Okay.” He placed his hand in Taesan's, allowing him to pull him up. In front, Taesan breathed a sigh of relief, grateful that they were in dim lighting because he was feeling the tips of his ears heat up. He willed his palms not to sweat.

Music and beeping fading away, they made their way out of the arcade. The mall was empty now, the only presence being the automated cleaning bot whirring across the floor. Leehan gave Taesan’s hand a gentle squeeze, catching his attention. “So, where do you live?”

Taesan let go of Leehan’s hand, forgetting that he was still holding on. “Uhm, it’s a 10-minute walk away. It’s faster if we walk out from this exit.” He motioned, turning away to lead the way. He could hear the brisk steps behind him as Leehan sped up to catch up with him, walking shoulder to shoulder with him.

“So you can be all touchy with Woonhak but won’t hold my hand for more than 15 seconds?” Leehan mused, half-teasing, half-serious. He tilted his head to look at Taesan.

Taesan’s head snapped to look at Leehan, who was subconsciously pouting, just a little. His eyebrows raised ever so slightly in surprise, before breaking into a quiet fit of laughter. “You’re not possibly jealous of Woonhak, are you?” He didn’t realize it the last time, but Leehan was an inch or two shorter than he was.

In response, Leehan huffed and looked away, which made Taesan laugh even harder. He reached out and slid his fingers against the blonde’s palms, then in between his fingers. “If you want to hold my hand, you can just do it. You weren’t so shy about touching me when you asked for my number,” Taesan teased, yet feeling his body warm up at the contact he initiated more purposefully this time.

Taesan felt Leehan squeeze his hand, visibly cringing as he spoke through clenched teeth, “Don’t remind me. I didn’t mean to do that back then.” He ran his free hand through his hair, embarrassed about him holding on to Taesan’s wrist being brought up.

“No, I thought it was cool of you. I tend to like direct people,” Taesan chuckled.

Leehan hummed in acknowledgement, replying, “Me too. People misunderstand me a lot. I wished they would just ask me things straight up instead of making false assumptions about me.”

Taesan mindlessly traced circles on Leehan’s hand with his thumb. “Yeah, me too.”

Leehan dipped his head slightly, smiling as he spoke, “I think we are more alike than I initially thought.”

“That’s a good thing, right?”

“Yeah. It is.” Leehan smiled brighter this time, as if weight had been lifted off his shoulders. Taesan smiled back, just happy seeing Leehan’s shallow dimple that would appear every time he smiled earnestly.

Before they knew it, they arrived at Taesan’s apartment. He felt a seed of nervousness in his throat as he watched Leehan take in the sight of his home. The way his eyes ventured seemed like he was looking at every little detail.

“Honestly, I thought all your walls were going to be black or something,” Leehan joked as he toed off his shoes.

Taesan laughed, amused, “I did consider painting all the walls, but that would mean I’d have to rip off all the band posters in my room and paste them back up. Not to mention the soundproofing, too.” He padded off to his kitchen, asking if Leehan wanted any drinks, to which he responded with an easy “just water is fine!”

Taesan emerged from his kitchen with two cups of iced water, motioning for Leehan to follow him into his room. Just like earlier, Leehan silently observed the room, grinning as he saw all the little things present that screamed Taesan. His instruments, the walls, and the plushies on his bed. Taesan let out a silent hiss at that, feeling exposed with the way his most intimate space was being seen by the blonde.

“You like cute things too, huh,” Leehan stated, gently patting one of the plushies on his bed.

Taesan set down the iced waters on some DIY coasters he made a few years ago. “Most of them were gifts. Except the big cat plushie. …There was a sale,” he leaned against his desk, fingers gripping his table. Wanting to shift the topic of conversation, he quickly told Leehan to have a seat on the beanbag, right next to where his record player was.

“Wow, it’s pretty,” Leehan gasped, hands reaching out to the vintage wood, but not daring to touch it.

Taesan felt pride bloom in his chest, along with a wave of satisfaction at Leehan’s appreciation towards his prized possession. “Isn’t it? It took me a long time to decide which one to buy. This one was recommended to me by Mr Bin, the nice gentleman at the cafe-library place I brought you to.”

He busied himself with going through the small shelf of his record collection, before pulling out one that was in pristine condition. He handed it to Leehan, wordlessly waiting for him to accept it. The latter looked up at him, confusion evident in his face.

“Uh, this was the thing I wanted to give you. I bought it for you the other day because I thought you would like it,” Taesan explained, urging Leehan to open it. “Here, I’ll teach you how to play it.”

He leaned down, softly explaining the counterweight, speed, and where to place the tone arm. Leehan watched silently, alternating between looking up at Taesan and down at the record player.

“Here, you can press this down for it to start playing,” he pointed at the cueing lever, looking at Leehan expectantly. He blinked at the Taesan, silent for a few seconds before finally starting the music.

The warm blend of instruments filled the room, the sound so rich it felt like something sparked alive in the air. The melody of soft jazz embraced the space.

Taesan watched. He stared owlishly at Leehan, waiting for any changes in his expression. Leehan didn’t say anything and simply looked back at Taesan, a hint of something fiery dancing in his eyes. But yet, he remained silent, face calm.

The silence- or the lack of conversation wasn’t uncomfortable; the music was already speaking, so it didn’t feel like it was necessary. However, it was unnerving Taesan. That seed of anxiety was sprouting again. Was it too much? Did he not like it? He bought it for Leehan because it reminded him of the blonde, but he had no idea if he would actually enjoy this type of music.

“Do- do you not like it?” Taesan all but whispered. The confessional question was fragile, and he feared it would be shattered like glass.

Leehan’s choked, eyebrows disappearing behind his bangs, eyes widening. His hands waved defensively as he stuttered out, “W-what? No! I like it! A lot! Uhm-” he dragged his hands over his face, “-I think I like you a lot.”

Taesan swears his heart actually skipped a beat. Like the organ itself swooned so hard it forgot to pump out blood for his body. He stared at Leehan, dumbstruck. Leehan, whose neck and cheeks were slowly turning faintly pink. He's sure he isn't faring very well in the blushing department either.

“Oh,” Taesan blurted, mind racing, yet not a singular helpful thought was being formed.

Leehan finally mustered up the courage to look at Taesan, to find a very flustered face mirroring his.

“...Sorry, I didn't really mean to blurt that out,” he whispered.

Taesan finally snapped out of it, albeit still feeling like his brain and soul were drifting out from his body.

“Nonono, please don't be sorry. I-” Taesan paused, running his hand through his hair, nervous energy charged at an all time high. “-If anything, I was afraid that I was being too much. I've never really liked anyone before, so I kept worrying that I was overstepping and-”

“-What? What do you mean you've never liked someone before? Like- you've never dated before?” Leehan couldn't help but chime in, eyes wide.

Taesan shrank a little, aware that it was more uncommon than not to have never dated at his age. “Yeah. Just- I dunno. Never had much interest in romance stuff till now…?”

Leehan moved his hands over to cover his mouth, then his head. “No way.”

“Come on, why's that so hard to believe? I mean, in theory I probably could have dated, I just didn't necessarily want to-”

“-Oh, believe me, you definitely could have,” Leehan replied seriously, all hints of his shyness gone. “You're quite literally the hottest guy I've ever met,” he deadpanned, speaking like he was stating the most obvious fact in the world.

A strangled sound escaped Taesan's throat, his previously receding blush flaring up twice as hard. He looked away, not being able to face Leehan right now.

“You need to stop saying things like that.”

“Sorry, I can't help it. Especially if it's true.”

Taesan groaned, taking a sip of the ice water. Hopefully, it would freeze his insides and eradicate all heat in his body because it felt like he was on fire.

Leehan seemed more relaxed and open now, placing a finger on the side of the record player, feeling the barely-there vibrations. “Anyway, I feel kinda bad that you're always getting me gifts. I should get you something too,” he said it more to himself than to Taesan.

“No, it's okay, you don't have to. I enjoy giving you things,” Taesan set down his cup, continuing, “And take this record as collateral. It's my way of convincing you to finally buy a record player.” He smirked.

Leehan sighed dramatically, “Can't I just come over and use yours?”

Taesan clicked his tongue, lifting an eyebrow. “Don't threaten me with a good time, Leehan.”

The accused giggled before leaning back and closing his eyes. “The song is lovely,” Leehan said softly, a small smile on his lips. His head nodded ever so slightly along to the music.

Taesan felt his bed sink slightly under his weight. He sat facing Leehan, basking in the delicious energy in the air. It was a perfect mix of everything he could ever hope for. He gazed at Leehan, who still had his eyes closed, with a serene smile on his lips. He decided that he wasn’t going to let him go.

And this time, he didn’t push his feeling of desire away.

-

“Taesan!” A familiar voice shouted from somewhere near the entrance of the store. Taesan tiptoed, just tall enough for his eyes to look over the rack of clothes he was organizing, spotting a waving Sungho with a Jaehyun stuck to his side.

He slipped on the last hanger, smiling. “Hi, good to see you guys alive.” They met halfway, Taesan giving each of them a light hug, which resulted in Jaehyun clinging onto Taesan now instead of Sungho. He reminded Taesan of a ball of slime, sticking onto whatever- or whoever he came into contact with.

“Taesan… I missed you so much…” Jaehyun plastered his face against Taesan’s, rubbing cheek to cheek like a cat leaving its scent on everything it likes. Taesan pushed his face away, grunting, “I literally saw you a week ago.” Aside from the kimchi fried rice, Taesan also cooked a few more times, delivering the food to the busy duo. Each time he visited, their eyebags seemed to get heavier.

Jaehyun groaned, “You don’t understand, exam weeks always feel like they’re never-ending. It feels like I haven’t seen you in months.” Taesan sighed, gently patting his back empathetically. “So how did your exams go?” he asked Sungho and Jaehyun, to which they responded with a mix of good and bad reactions.

“Anyway, enough with the depressing talk… Let’s go get some frozen yogurt!” Sungho clapped his hands together, lighting up. Jaehyun cheered, making his way out of the shop while waiting for Taesan to let Giselle know he was going out for his lunch break now.

“Is that it?” Jaehyun pointed at the bright shop just in view. Taesan nodded, falling into pace with the other two.

“I can’t wait to see who your little crush is~” Sungho sang. Taesan groaned. He just hopes they don’t embarrass him nearly as badly as what Jooyeon and Gaon did on a regular basis in front of Leehan and Woonhak. Sungho and Jaehyun sped up ahead, reaching the door first. Taesan held his breath as he heard Woonhak’s usual welcome before he could see around the corner.

“Welcome!” Woonhak chirped, practically jumping when he saw Taesan follow right behind the two new handsome faces. “Taesan!”

“Hi, Woonhak,” he smiled easily at the youngest. He ruffled his brown hair before turning to greet Leehan. “Hi.”

The blonde smiled, slinging his arms loosely around Woonhak. “Hey. They’re the friends you were in the dance club with, right?” He turned and smiled and bowed slightly to Jaehyun and Sungho as a form of polite greeting, bringing Woonhak along with him.

Jaehyun gasped. “Yeppi, I can totally tell who’s the cute one and who’s the cute cute one.” Taesan jabbed his side to silence him. Luckily, Sungho rolled his eyes at Jaehyun’s shameless blabbing, turning to the two frozen yogurt boys and flashing a genuine smile. “Hello! You guys must be Leehan and Woonhak! We’ve been wanting to check out the frozen yogurt here for a while now,” he spoke evenly, trying to smooth over Jaehyun’s chaotic energy.

“And to check out Taesan’s massive crush-” Jaehyun yelped as Taesan jabbed him in the stomach again, a cold smile on his face. He softened before introducing the two of his friends to the other two behind the counter. “This is Sungho, and this guy is Myung Jaehyun. Been friends with them since high school,” he turned, “And this is Woonhak, and… Leehan.”

“Woah, Taesan, even all your friends are handsome too,” Woonhak mused, eyes sparkling with a hint of starstruck.

Jaehyun swatted his hand, gushing, “My goodness, the same could be said to you! You really are a cutie just like Taesan claimed!” The two of them seemed to hit it off, speaking quickly as if there was a fear of being separated.

Taesan cocked an eyebrow at the chatterbirds before returning his attention to Leehan and Sungho, who was taking in the large variety of toppings displayed.

“They have a ton of cool flavours, I think the melon is really good,” Taesan pointed at the bright screen overhead, colourful menu boasting the large variety.

Sungho scanned it, humming, before directing his question to Leehan. “They all look really good, could you recommend a flavour as well?”

Leehan chuckled, replying, “I would also recommend melon. That’s my favourite too.” Momentarily, Sungho was stunned by the beautiful smiling face in front of him. He turned to Taesan, whispering, “Dude! This is insane! You didn’t tell me he was literally sculpted by god!”

Without waiting for a reply, he quickly turned back, nonchalantly ordering a melon-flavoured frozen yogurt. Taesan recoiled a little, taken aback by Sungho’s fierce whispers. At least his friends seemed to like Leehan and Woonhak…?

After their orders were done, the three of them sat down, chatting with the other two who were leaning against the counter, engrossed in the conversation. Taesan leaned back into the chair, pleasantly surprised at how well they got along. He mostly listened, occasionally laughing at Sungho’s quips or Woonhak’s big reactions.

When the three of them finished their frozen yogurts and got ready to leave, everyone seemed a little reluctant to part ways. “Ugh, come on, it’s not like this is the last time you will see each other.” Taesan deadpanned, holding the glass door open for what seemed like minutes.

“Oh, right! You guys are coming for Taesan’s band performance this Saturday, right? We’ll see you again then!” Sungho finally made some progress in making his exit, followed by Jaehyun. The three of them waved till they could no longer see the two figures waving back from inside the store.

There was a moment of silence before Taesan broke it with an amused huff, “You guys seemed to get along well.”

“I think you severely undermined how cute they were,” Jaehyun replied seriously.

“So are you making any progress with Leehan?” Sungho asked, looking a little too worried for his usual composure. “You can’t let him go, okay? He is seriously such a catch.”

Taesan scoffed, finding his friends’ intense interest in his love life rather funny. “He told me he likes me. A lot. So that’s something,” he replied, keeping his eyes straight ahead. He tried his best to seem unaffected, but a small smile still made his way onto his face, chest blooming with warmth again.

-

“Okay, we’re starting in five. Let’s do this!” Jooyeon whooped, hyping the rest of them up. Taesan smirked, heart starting to race. The adrenaline he got from performing was a drug. Today, they were opening for a local music festival, which was a pretty big deal. They had been contacted by one of the event organizers after she watched one of their gigs by chance at the bar.

Taesan and the band dressed up a bit more than usual, coordinating their outfits to match. Black and red, hair and makeup done. Taesan was wearing a tight tank top with a pair of very ripped jeans. A red studded belt loose around his waist, and a red leather jacket to match. He had also just touched up his hair dye a day ago for it to appear more vibrant on stage.

Looking down, he fiddled with the rings he was wearing. He had also painted his nails black, something he tried not to do too much to let his nail beds breathe. He looked over at Gaon, who was doing his usual lip thrills to loosen up before the stage lit up. Seeing the familiar routine, Taesan smiled and took a deep breath to calm his nerves. He couldn’t tell if he was nervous because of the new venue, or because he knew there were new sets of eyes in the audience today, especially a pair of round doe eyes that he really wanted to impress.

Before he could overthink it, he heard the cues come in his in-ears, and the powerful drum beats vibrated the stage as lights flashed. His heart leapt as he heard the exciting moment everyone fell into sync. They were playing seven songs, half of which were covers, and the other half were written by him.

The tracks blurred together as he thought of nothing, except to just perform. He played his heart out, and sang his soul out. By the end of the last song, he was panting and sweating, barely feeling a trail of sweat run down his neck. Jungsu wrapped up their performance with a quick reminder of their band name and to follow their socials.

They thanked the audience, quickly making an exit so the next performers could set up the stage. Once they reached the back door, Taesan quickly removed his jacket, grinning wolfishly at his bandmates.

“That was fucking awesome, today’s crowd was the biggest one we performed for!” Jooyeon tackled Gaon, excitement too much to contain internally.

“I’m glad they seemed to enjoy our original songs too,” Taesan added, still riding on the high of the cheers and screams.

“Hahaha! Hold on, Taesan, your sweat is red right now,” Hueningkai giggled, reaching out to wipe his sweat with the back of his sleeves.

Taesan backed away, worried about staining his shirt. The number of times he had to roughly scrub his bloody-looking pillowcase taught him enough. “Oh! That’s okay, I wouldn’t want to get your sleeve stained red.”

Gaon laughed, “Honestly, it’s kind of a look. Super edgy. You look like you’re sweating blood.”

They chattered animatedly backstage, the adrenaline still running through their veins.

“Let’s quickly pack up so we can enjoy the rest of the festival too!” Jungsu declared.

The rest responded with a chorus of agreements, eager to be a part of the hyped up audience too. Taesan whipped out his phone, sending a message to his group chat with Jaehyun and Sungho.

taekitty: hi, where r u guys? im gonna be done in a few mins

yeppi: we are with leehan and woonhak at the right side of the stage

yeppi: [photo]

taekitty: oh ok i know where that is

taekitty: stay there

myungmyung: [photo]

yeppi: btw i think you have successfully swooned leehan with your performance

It was a selfie of Jaehyun and Sungho, pointing at Woonhak and Leehan in the background, unaware that they were being photographed. It was a little blurry, obvious that they were moving when the photo was taken.

Replying to [photo]:

taekitty: cute

myungmyung: i hope you are talking about us and not only about ur massive fat juicy crush, leehan

Taesan rolled his eyes before saving the photo. He said a quick goodbye to his bandmates before leaving the room, off to find his other friends. As he passed by a large window, he caught a glimpse of his reflection. His eye makeup was slightly smudged, and streaks of red were running down his neck, some on his shoulders. He hummed. Gaon was right, it was kind of a look.

He could feel the beat of the bass booming in his chest as he took a deep breath, looking at the crowd of people he had to squeeze through to find his friends. He took a deep breath, bracing himself for the feeling of body against body. Right as he finally saw the heads of Woonhak and Jaehyun, he felt a gentle tap on his shoulder. It was a girl around his age, half a head shorter than he was. She had chunky streaks of pink in her hair and a deep set of dimples.

When she spoke, she tiptoed a little for Taesan to hear her over the crowd. “Hey! Your performance was awesome! I’m totally a fan!” She smiled, revealing a ring of metal on her teeth. Was it a smiley piercing? Taesan vaguely remembers seeing a picture of it at the piercing studio he went to.

Taesan leaned down, almost shouting, “Thanks! That means a lot!”

“You’re really handsome, by the way! Could I get your number?” She pointed at her phone, in case he couldn’t hear her over the loud music.

Taesan offered an apologetic smile before leaning in again, “I’m sorry! I don’t give my number out! Thanks for the support, though!”

The girl laughed, brushing it off. She shouted, “No problem!” before waving Taesan away so he could continue on his way. She went back to nodding along to the music with her other friends. They were all dressed fit for the event, dyed hair and piercings styled boldly. It reminded him of his bandmates, and he smiled at them before turning to where he saw his two taller friends he had spotted earlier, only to see that all four of them were looking at him.

Taesan scoffed at the overly gleeful look on Jaehyun’s face. “What?”

“If it isn’t the man of the hour!” He slung his arm around Taesan’s shoulder. “That happens every single time after he performs, by the way,” Jaehyun spoke directly to Leehan, pointing to the girl who asked for his number. Taesan rolled his eyes, gently shrugging off Jaehyun’s arm since he didn’t want to get hair dye on him either.

Woonhak was practically bouncing as he exclaimed, “That was so cool! You are so cool!” Taesan laughed, finding it precious that there was someone out there who outwardly admired him so much. He ruffled the youngest’s hair, almost making it a habit at this point.

“Awesome performance! Might be the best one yet!” Sungho grinned, passing Taesan a bottle of water. He mouthed a quick “thank you” before gulping down the water, watching Leehan as he did so. He had an expression that was hard to decode. It seemed to be a mix of… no- probably not. It’s not like reading Leehan was easy either. Taesan never seemed to know what he was thinking. Good thing he doesn’t need to mull over it when he could just ask.

“So? How was it?” Taesan slid next to Leehan, not having to shout since he could lean as close to him as he wanted. “Did you like it?” Mirth laced his voice.

Leehan looked up at him through his eyelashes, raking over Taesan’s body, from his hair to his boots, top to bottom. He hooked a finger in the belt loop of Taesan's jeans, pulling him closer. He leaned in, the ghost of his lips barely brushing against Taesan’s ear. “Yes.”

“Which part did you like?”

“Almost everything.”

“Almost everything?” Taesan raised an eyebrow. “What wasn’t to your liking, my prince?”

Leehan deadpanned, “The girl asking for your number.”

Taesan startled, before bursting out laughing. He flushed his shoulders against Leehan’s, chuckling in his ear, “I knew you were the jealous type.”

Leehan blew a strand of hair away from his eyes, mumbling a “Whatever”. For the remainder of the time they were there, they stayed glued together, side by side. Taesan relished the moments where Leehan laughed, leaning against him as he did.

As the sun began to set, he felt the exhaustion seep into his bones. The music and festival were fantastic, but at the end of the day, being in such a crowded environment truly sucked his soul out of his body. “Do you guys wanna head home soon? Before the crowd gets going too,” he shouted over at his group of friends.

Everyone nodded readily, except for Woonhak, who still had enough energy to power an entire windmill. Probably. Leehan ended up hooking his arm around Woonhak, dragging him out as his eyes lingered wistfully on the stage.

“How is everyone getting home?” Taesan asked once they finally broke free from the ocean of people. The sudden wave of cool air raised goosebumps on his arms.

“Sungho and I are gonna share a cab back to our dorms. Woonhak, do you want to come with us? We can ask the driver to drop you off first since your house is pretty close to ours,” Jaehyun replied.

Woonhak’s eyes lit up. “Okay!” The three of them gathered around Sungho’s phone to key in their respective addresses.

Leehan poked the spot between Taesan’s shoulder blades, the touch leaving him feeling ticklish. “Are you hungry?” He asked, still standing close despite not having to compete with the booming music anymore.

“Yeah. I’m ravenous,” Taesan replied, suddenly aware of how overwhelmingly empty his stomach felt.

“Wanna come back to my place for ramen? You don’t have to say yes though. I know you must be exhausted by now,” Leehan asked carefully, but his eyes shone with hope that Taesan would say yes. And who was Taesan to refuse?

“Ramen sounds good,” he answered with a smile, which was reciprocated by Leehan, with a crinkle in his eyes.

Sungho’s cab arrived first, with the three of them bidding a quick goodbye as they boisterously slipped into the car, with Woonhak bumping his head onto the car door and yelping out loud. Jaehyun gasped and patted his head before carefully ushering Woonhak inside and shouting a bye to Taesan and Leehan.

Taesan huffed a laugh, slightly waving at the car that was slowly driving away. The faint silhouette of Jaehyun and Woonhak waving frantically in the backseat could be seen through the tinted glass. “They’re so loud together.. I’m glad they get along well, though.”

“I know, I’m kind of worried though. There are too many contestants now to be his favourite,” Leehan sighed dramatically, “He told me I was his favourite before you came and charmed him with your ripped jeans and pretty eyeliner.”

This actually startled a laugh out of Taesan. “You'd better watch out, I’m vying for your spot now. Before you know it, he’s gonna dye his hair just like me.”

Leehan gasped a little and actually started sulking. “Please don’t say that… My unagi…”

Amused, Taesan bumped his shoulder with the blonde’s, assuring him. “I’m just kidding. I think it's adorable how he told you you’re his favourite, though.” Leehan went on to tell the story of how it all started as a joke between him and his roommate, Riwoo, but he actually became serious about winning Woonhak over, bringing him to go fishing, teaching him pottery, and even cooking a new recipe for him to try.

“Ultimately, my efforts paid off, of course,” Leehan concluded with a smug smile. Taesan giggled throughout the story, finding himself growing fond of their bond. “Oh wait, that’s ours,” Leehan pointed to a grey car, eyes flicking from his phone to the car plate to double-check if it matched.

Both of them quickly scuttled over to the car, sliding into the backseat. It was going to be a rather quick journey of a 15-minute drive, but a couple of minutes into the ride, Taesan felt his eyelids grow heavy, the soft tunes on the radio lulling him to sleep. Performing and then watching other performances in such a loud place really wore him down.

The next time he opened his eyes was when he felt a warm hand gently squeezing his own. He blinked the sleep out of his eyes before they landed on Leehan.

“Hey, we’re here.” He spoke softly, not wanting to immediately rouse Taesan up from his half-woken state.

“Mmkay,” Taesan mumbled, suppressing a yawn as he thanked the driver before ducking out of the car. Leehan’s hands made their way back to him, hooking his index finger with his pinky as he led the way to his and Riwoo’s apartment. Taesan slowly roused out of his sleep-induced haze when they were in the elevator, when he could feel a pair of round brown eyes on him.

“What’s up?” He asked Leehan, who was looking at him with a slight pout.

“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have asked you to come. I feel bad for dragging you home with me when you’re so tired-”

“Leehan. It’s okay. I wanted to come. And honestly, if I went home alone, I would've probably skipped dinner, so in a way you’re taking care of me right now.” Taesan smiled, “And I do want to meet Riwoo too. It’s only fair after you’ve met my friends.”

Leehan straightened up a little, replying with a small smile that could be heard in his voice. “Okay.”

The moment Taesan stepped into their apartment, a fluff of ginger hair poked out from behind the couch, hands on the backboard. He had colourful painted nails, a pair of clear, almond eyes, and his position reminded Taesan a lot of a meerkat. Before Taesan could utter a hello, the ginger smiled, rushing out, “Hi! You must be Taesan!”

Taesan smiled, grateful to be welcomed by the guy he had heard so much about. “Hi, and you must be Riwoo.”

“Yeah, it’s lovely to meet you. Leehan talks about you all the time.” He spoke at a faster pace than Leehan did, but his energy was calm and grounded.

Leehan groaned, not expecting to be ambushed right as he set foot in his own apartment, but didn’t deny it. He quickly ushered Taesan in and offered him a cup of water.

“Rwioo, have you eaten yet?” Leehan asked Riwoo as he made his way to the kitchen.

“No, I was waiting for you to get home,” he walked over to the kitchen, dragging his feet ,which were wearing a very cute pair of fluffy otter slippers.

“I’m gonna cook some ramen for Taesan and I, do you want me to make a portion for you too?” Leehan asked, already pulling out a pot from the top cabinet, which was snatched away by Riwoo in an instant.

“Oh, please, I’ll cook. You go make sure our guest is comfortable,” Riwoo chased Leehan out of the kitchen, already pushing up his sleeves to his elbows.

“Are you sure?”

“Yes, I’m sure. We both know my ramen is tastier anyway,” he laughed.

Leehan could only shrug, telling Taesan, “It’s true, I don’t know how he does it, but it’s always better than mine.”

Taesan laughed, following Leehan into his room. Leehan’s room was simple. He didn’t have his walls plastered with posters or lines of soundproofing foam. The walls were a light grey, and a few fish stickers clustered near his desk. The room was dimly lit with peculiar lamps, making the room feel extra homely. There was a faint scent of apples from the candle near his door.

“Having you in my room makes me nervous,” Leehan confessed, hands wringing together.

“Now you know how I felt,” Taesan smirked.

“By the way, do you want to take a shower? I want you to be comfortable. I can lend you my clothes,” Leehan asked, already opening his closet to pull out a few pieces of fabric.

“Yes please, if you don’t mind,” Taesan replied, eyes still wandering around his room. He smiled when he spotted the record he gifted him carefully propped up on his bedside table with a pair of glasses.

“Here, I picked something oversized so it’s comfortable,” Leehan deposited his clothes into Taesan’s hands before showing him the way to the bathroom.

Taesan let out a long sigh as he felt the warm water work its magic throughout his body. He rubbed his neck and arms extra hard to get the dye stains out, watching the body wash foam into a light pink. The shower left him feeling much more alive, fully awake and almost hydrated like a plant getting rain in the desert.

When he stepped out of the shower and made his way to the kitchen, he looked down and morbidly realized what he had done. “Uhm… Leehan?”

Both Leehan and Riwoo looked up, before bursting out into a fit of laughter. Taesan was holding up a previously white towel, now almost completely red. He couldn’t believe he had made such a rookie mistake.

“Oh my god, I am so sorry-” Taesan stared at the towel in shock. At home, he had a designated dark blue towel just for drying his hair because of how often he dyed it.

Leehan gasped through his laughter, replying, “No, it’s really fine. You don’t even know the amount of times Riwoo has accidentally done the exact same thing. Once, he even dyed my white shirt pink because he tossed a towel with hair dye on it in our washing machine.”

Riwoo smiled sheepishly, “Yeah… that was my bad.”

“Okay, I’m going to take a shower now, too. Taesan, could you pick a movie for us to watch while we eat?” Leehan said, pausing when he reached Taesan. He leaned in, nose almost tickling Taesan’s neck. His face splits in a smile, delight dancing in his eyes, whispering, “You smell like me.”, before making his way to the bathroom. Taesan brought his hand to his neck, rubbing where he felt the ghost of Leehan’s breath. He could feel the tips of his ears heat up. He shook his head, willing the blush to disappear before he stood beside Riwoo and asked if he needed any help, to which the shorter declined. He instructed Taesan to just sit down and pick a movie.

Taesan claimed a corner of the couch, hand tussling his hair to make it dry faster. He and Riwoo made small talk over a small distance, learning bits and pieces of information about each other. Taesan learnt that Riwoo was a dance major, and he taught different styles of it for freelancing. He has a sweet tooth and likes painting his nails himself. Taesan finally settled on Big Hero 6, one of his favourite animated movies of all time.

Pleased with his choice, Taesan carefully padded around the living room before noticing a fish tank right beside the front door, which he had missed since his focus was all on greeting the roommate Leehan talked so fondly about. The water was slightly yellowish brown, with a beautiful piece of driftwood in the centre. Taesan huffed an air of disbelief, suddenly remembering their first ever proper conversation on the phone where Leehan mentioned he was going to buy driftwood for his fish tank.

He crouched down, smiling at the memory when he saw the reflection of someone approaching on the glass of the tank, feeling warmth against his shoulders as Leehan crouched down next to Taesan. A light scent of the same bodywash wafted into his nose.

“What are you smiling at?” Leehan asked, damp strands of hair covering his eyes.

“Nothing. Just remembered the first time you called me. You told me you were on the way to the pet store to buy driftwood for your tank.”

Leehan snickered softly, “I remember too. That’s when you asked me out on a date.” He gently rested his head against Taesan’s. “Are you free next week? Let me plan a date this time.”

“Yeah. I’m free,” Taesan breathed, watching Leehan’s lashes flutter as he blinked.

“Okay! Dinner’s ready!” Riwoo called, unfolding a table in front of the couch. The duo quickly scampered over to help carry the bowls of steaming hot noodles to the table.

Taesan gulped, feeling saliva pool under his tongue. “Holy shit. This looks insane.” What was in front of him wasn’t your typical bowl of ramen. It looked like it was actually cooked by a Michelin chef. It wasn’t just soupy noodles with an egg cracked in; it had a bunch of other colourful ingredients too: greens, meat, and even sesame seeds to top it all off.

Riwoo scrunched his nose, smiling shyly. “Thanks. I’m just glad someone other than Leehan and Woonhak can appreciate the way I cook ramen.” The three of them sat down comfortably, with Leehan in the middle.

“Oh right, Leehan told me that you know Woonhak, too,” Taesan quipped.

“Yup, he’s practically attached to Leehan’s hip, even outside of work. Ihannie brought him home once, and ever since then, he treats this place like his second home.” Riwoo shook his head, but clearly fond of the younger.

Taesan smiled to himself. It was sweet how obvious it was that they all adored each other.

The movie was just as good as he remembered, and was even better with the company. Riwoo’s quips and jokes, and Leehan’s warmth and how he could feel his shoulders move every time he laughed. By the end of the movie, Taesan’s belly was full, and so was his heart. He closed his eyes in content, feeling the sleepiness come back after the amazing meal. He let out a loud sigh as he leaned back, head tilting up.

With his eyes still closed, he spoke out loud, “Leehan, you have to invite me over again so I can have another taste of Riwoo’s ramen. It was life-changing.” He heard the sound of Riwoo chuckling and his footsteps as he made his way to the kitchen.

“What about me? How could you only come over just for Riwoo’s ramen?” Taesan heard Leehan’s grumbling before he felt a warm weight on his lap. Ever since they broke the touch barrier that day after the arcade, physical closeness had become natural between the two of them. Taesan liked it a lot. Casual touches, or just orbiting around each other, closer. He felt his heart beat louder, instead of faster, as if his heart saw the sun after being in the dark.

Taesan looked down to see Leehan’s usual bright eyes looking at him, with his hair spread out on his lap. His hair has already dried by now, slightly puffier and more wavy than how it usually looked.

“...Can I touch your hair?”

Leehan closed his eyes immediately. “Please.”

Taesan chuckled in surprise at how eager he seemed. “What, are you a puppy?” He gingerly touched the tips of his hair before he ran his fingers through his hair. It was soft and longer than any hairstyle Taesan has ever tried. Since they first met, Leehan’s natural hair has grown a little, adding a shadow to his roots that blends in with his blonde hair. Leehan hummed in satisfaction, the vibrations being felt through Taesan’s lap.

“Are you gonna grow out your hair even longer?”

“I don’t know. What do you think?”

“No idea. You would probably look good with anything.”

Leehan smiled, eyes still closed.

“What about you? Are you gonna dye your hair another colour?”

Taesan hummed, thinking. “Maybe sometime soon? I’m getting tired of having to touch it up all the time. And staining all my white shirts red.”

“Are you going back to black?”

Taesan shrugged, even though Leehan couldn't see it. “Probably?”

“I really liked your Oreo hair.”

Taesan huffed, remembering the embarrassing moment Leehan looked through his photos in front of him. “Alright.”

“I’m serious!”

“...Okay. I don’t want to repeat the same design, though.”

They talked about this and that, and at some point, Taesan weaved a few braids on strands of hair that were the longest.

“I’m about to fall asleep,” Leehan mumbled.

Taesan paused, hand freezing in his hair. “Do not fall asleep. Get off so I can go home.”

Leehan whined, flipping and wrapping his arms around Taesan’s waist. “Why? Just don’t go. Nice waist, by the way.”

Taesan scoffed, rolling his eyes, trying to pry himself free from the blonde’s arms. “Stop using this as an excuse to feel me up.” He finally wrangled himself free, leaving a disgruntled Leehan with strands of hair and braids sticking up on the couch.

“Okay, okay, fine! But before you go, I have something for you,” Leehan melted off the couch like liquid before finally standing straight and walking into his room, with a curious Taesan following close behind. From behind, Taesan patted down a few strands of unruly blonde hair that were standing upright, but left the braids in Leehan’s hair.

Taesan watched as Leehan pulled out the drawer of his bedside table, rummaging through a bunch of trinkets before pulling out a silver keychain with beads of black and red.

“Here, this is for you,” Leehan said, placing the keychain in Taesan’s palm. “It can’t really compare to the record you gave me, but I made it myself, so I hope that counts for… something…?” He rubbed the back of his neck.

Taesan carefully picked it up between his fingers by the keyring, turning it around, realizing the mini photoframe contained a scaled-down printed cover of his favourite band.

He let out a small gasp, eyebrows raising in surprise. “How did you know this was my favourite band?”

“I counted. The uhm- posters in your room.” Leehan was now sitting on his bed, looking away from Taesan and running his hand through his hair, which got stuck in the braids. “You had the most My Chemical Romance posters up, so I just guessed that was your favourite.”

Taesan sputtered something between a laugh and a gasp. “You counted?” What an unorthodox way of finding out someone’s favourite band. He was charmed.

Leehan nodded, still not looking at Taesan. Taesan could only stare at his side profile incredulously before looking at all the charms and cute beads Leehan used. There was even a tiny black cat attached to the hoop of the keychain, right next to a silver star charm.

“Do you make stuff like this often?” Taesan asked, carefully pocketing the keychain.

“Yeah! Wanna see?” Leehan beamed, flopping over on his bed so he could reach the drawer. Taesan leaned in, taking a closer look at his keychain collection.

“I couldn’t find any fish keychains, so I started making them myself. This one is my favourite because the colours are nice. This one was the first one I made. You can tell it’s a little messy here,” Leehan rummaged through the small pile, holding each one up as he explained it. “Yours was the first one I made in that style, though. I hope you like it.” He gazed up at Taesan, eyes expectant and hands slightly clenching the keychains.

“Of course, I like it. Thank you, Leehan,” Taesan replied, softening. Taesan loved giving. Whether it be delivering food for Jaehyun and Sungho, or making hand-embroidered patches for his bandmates. He liked it because he knew it was the most comfortable way for him to express his love and appreciation for his friends. He never expected anything back because just seeing his friends happy made him happy. His friends would love him back in their own ways; be it Jaehyun cuddling up to him at every chance he got, or Jungsu complimenting him on his performance in the quiet of their band room after everyone else had left.

But actually receiving the same type of quiet, thoughtful care from someone else stunned him for a moment. He felt bare, even though he was the one receiving it.

Taesan gazed at Leehan, who seemed happy that his gift was well received. There was a beat of silence before Taesan asked, “... I know I asked this once as a joke, but are you sure you didn’t actually plant a spybot in my brain?”

Leehan giggled, firmly denying it. “Why?”

“It’s kinda freaking me out how perfect you are. Like- I mean-” Taesan groaned, hanging his head, as Leehan laughed, but luckily choosing not to tease him over his choice of words. “It feels as if you just see me. I- I don’t know how you do it.” Taesan looked up to see a sparkle in Leehan’s eyes. “It’s as if you know me better than I do myself.”

Leehan was quiet as he thought about what Taesan said. As he came up with his conclusion, he leaned back, commenting, “I feel the same way about you, by the way. Perhaps we are soulmates.” He shrugged. “Perchance.”

Taesan’s nose crinkled a little. “You can’t just say ‘Perchance’. And also, I don’t believe in soulmates.”

“Okay, fine, I guess the jig is up. It’s true. I planted a spybot in your brain,” Leehan crossed his arms before flopping back down on his bed.

“I knew it. How could you? I thought we were soulmates,” Taesan sighed dramatically.

“You just said you didn’t believe in soulmates.”

“Yeah. However, I’m a logical guy. It could be up for debate if reasonable evidence is shown in court.”

Leehan raised his head from his pillow, raising an eyebrow. “Alright. Noted.”

Taesan stretched before saying, “Okay, I gotta go now. I’ll return your clothes when I see you at work, yeah?”

Leehan pouted, reluctantly nodding. He walked Taesan to the door, leaning against it as he said his goodbyes.

“I’ll see you on Monday?”

“Yeah.”

“You were really cool today, by the way. I’m a fan now.”

Taesan raised an eyebrow, replying, “That’s unfortunate. I don’t date fans.”

“Never mind. You aren’t even cool. I don’t even like emo boys, as a matter of fact.”

Taesan chuckled, gently shoving a grinning Leehan before finally waving goodbye.

That night, Taesan slept in Leehan’s clothes, and wondered when would be an appropriate time to ask someone to be his.

-

“I have a question,” Taesan asked, putting down the caramel pudding Sungho made for them.

“What is it?” Jaehyun asked before slurping a big spoonful of pudding and choking on it.

Sungho sighed exasperatedly as he patted the back of a violently coughing Jaehyun. “Yeah, what’s up? Is something bothering you?”

Taesan poked a circle in his pudding with the dessert spoon, a little embarrassed to ask what he wanted to ask. “I just- wanted to get your opinions. Or to hear your thoughts. When do you think is a good time to ask someone to be your boyfriend?”

Sungho’s eyebrows shot up in surprise, hand pausing on Jaehyun's back, who was still trying to recover from practically snorting up a chunk of pudding. “Is this about Leehan? Honestly, I thought you guys were already together from the way you guys acted at the festival. I just assumed you didn’t feel the need to tell us about finally getting together.”

“Uhm- no. Not yet.” Taesan was secretly grateful that Jaehyun was busy coughing his lungs out, so he couldn’t tease him about his ears going red and feeling like he was a 14-year-old boy asking for romantic advice. “I’ve never dated before, so it feels a little scary. It’s a new territory for me, and I don’t know if there are like- rules or whatever to dating.”

Sungho hummed, his hand resuming its gentle patting on Jaehyun’s back. “Well, I don’t think there are any rules in dating, nor is there an ideal timeline for different stages. It’s different for everyone. You’ve known him for about two months now, right? If you feel ready, then you should go for it.”

“Keugh… Yeah! I mean look at Sungho and I. We live together, and I even wash his socks occasionally, and yet he still has not proposed to me!” Jaehyun chimed in, coughing in between every few words. Sungho rolled his eyes in response.

“I’m not marrying someone whose bedroom floor is barely visible with the amount of clothes and boxes there are strewn everywhere!”

“I can change!!!”

Sungho put up a hand between him and Jaehyun, arguing, “You said that like, two months ago.” Turning back to Taesan and ignoring Jaehyun’s whining, Sungho’s expression softened as he said, “Don’t worry too much, Taesan-ah. I can tell both of you like each other a lot. Just do what feels right.”

“I agree with my husband. Just go with your gut. Just remember, timing is important too, though, you might miss the right timing if you drag it on for too long.”

Taesan nodded lightly, taking in the advice his friends gave him. Okay. Seems reasonable and doable.

-

“Taesan!” Leehan shouted from across the road, eyes squinting from both the sunlight and his bright smile. He waved, the keychains on his backpack swinging as he moved. Leehan was dressed comfortably in an oversized sweater, the collar loose enough to see a sliver of collarbone. He was pretty as usual. Taesan smiled back, offering a small wave as he waited for the pedestrian light to turn green.

“Hi,” Taesan breathed out, feeling the heat of the sun warming up his skin.

“Hey. Ready?” Leehan beamed, reaching out for his hand.

Taesan loosely interlocked their fingers together, lightly swinging their hands as they fell into pace. “No. I don’t even know where you’re taking me.” Leehan’s hand was warm as always.

“Yup. Just like how you refused to tell me where you were taking me for our first date,” Leehan replied, glee in his tone.

“I guess that’s fair.”

Taesan took a deep breath, enjoying the way the warm breeze carded through his hair.

“By the way, I’m not sure if Woonhak has already texted you about it, but he’s been obsessed with the idea of a “Nintendo Party”. He won’t stop talking Riwoo’s and my ear off about it.”

“Oh yeah, he vaguely mentioned something about inviting me over to play Nintendo with you guys.”

Leehan raised an eyebrow, eyes squinting. “Vaguely? You have to show me what he sent you.”

Taesan shrugged, scrolling up his chat with Woonhak to show the alleged messages to a dubious Leehan. His blonde hair moved in the wind, tickling Taesan’s cheek.

“What the hell? Why do you have his contact saved as ‘chestnut’? That’s way too cute.” Leehan’s head snapped up. “You better have saved me as a cute nickname too.” His eyes narrowed into slits.

“Uhm-”

“Did you really save my contact as my name?” Leehan whined, letting go of Taesan’s hand to cover his eyes, pretending to be hurt. “I knew it. Woonhak was my competition from day one.”

A laugh slipped out of Taesan before he grabbed Leehan’s hand again, rushing out, “Okay, in my defence, I’ll change it soon. There’s no point if I’m going to change it anyway.”

“What does that even mean?”

“I don’t know, you have to wait to find out.” Taesan gently pulled Leehan closer to read the message Woonhak sent him a few days ago.

chestnut: hi taesan, wanna play nintendo with me and leehan and riwoo in a few weeks?

chestnut: only if u are free though

chestnut: no biggie

taesan: sure

taesan: sounds fun

chestnut: O

chestnut: ok cool

chestnut: :D

Leehan scoffed at the screen, eyes wide. “No biggie? Only if you are free? Look at this guy trying to act all nonchalant in front of you, my god.” He quickly stuck his hand in his back pocket, taking out his phone to take a photo of their chat. “Riwoo needs to see this. You won’t believe how fixated he is on this. He seems to like you a lot.”

“That’s pretty cute, though?” Taesan laughed. He was fond of the younger, too.

“Alright, I get it, you like him more than me,” Leehan rolled his eyes, continuing, “Anyway, he asked you a few weeks in advance because he has his exams soon. He wanted to celebrate the end of his exams with a gaming marathon, and we are his chosen victims.”

Taesan hummed. “It’s alright, it sounds fun. I’ll look forward to it. Oh, speaking of plans, Jaehyun and Sungho are inviting you to some party next week. There’s a special DJ coming, but I don’t know him, so I’ll only go if you go.”

“Hmm… Okay. I’ll go. Have not really experienced the party scene here yet.”

“Ugh… I was hoping you would actually say no, so I didn’t have to go,” Taesan sighed as Leehan giggled. Partying with Sungho and Jaehyun was always fun, but god did it tire him out. “I’ll let them know you’re down for it later.”

Taesan was surprised when Leehan announced they had arrived at the date spot, because it felt like they had only been walking for 5 minutes, even though it was something closer to 15. He read the big sign on the new building, pleasantly surprised. “A fishing cafe? I’ve never been to an indoor fishing place before.”

“Really? Riwoo brought me here for the first time a few months ago, and it’s really fun.”

“Yeah, I’ve only fished outdoors with my dad. Are you any good?”

“No. I’m actually terrible at this. Riwoo always manages to catch twice the amount I do,” Leehan shrugged.

They made their way inside, and the smell of water and soft whirring of filters reminded Taesan a lot of a fish farm. They picked their spot and sat down, with Leehan rummaging through his backpack and pulling out a hardware box. When he opened it, an explosion of colour was revealed. Bright strings, wires, and what seemed to be beads were organised neatly.

“Whoa, you’re tying your own fly?” Taesan asked, recognizing the familiar parts.

“Yeah, this might be my favourite part of fishing, actually,” Leehan replied, poking his finger around trying to decide on which colour to use.

Taesan watched Leehan, curious cat-like eyes observing the way Leehan’s hands effortlessly wrapped the thread around the hook, adding feathers, tinsel, and beads to slowly build the details of the lure. Taesan’s mouth was slightly parted, in complete awe of watching it come together in front of his very eyes. Once it was done, what Leehan had in his hands was a hyper-realistic lure that Taesan would’ve definitely bit on if he were a fish.

“What the hell? Where did you learn to do this?”

Leehan smiled with his eyes, replying, “YouTube.”

“Can you teach me? That was impressive,” Taesan replied, eyes sparkling with amazement.

Leehan lit up, more than happy to share his hobby. “Of course! Come here, it’s actually easier than it looks.” He pulled Taesan’s chair closer to him, leaning in.

“You lied, this is not easier than it looks,” Taesan grumbled under his breath, hands at an awkward angle, trying to wrap the wire tighter around the hook. It was messy, and Taesan held his breath for fear that an exhale would loosen everything up.

Leehan’s hand wrapped around Taesan’s as he laughed, “Here, you can do it like this so it won’t come loose.” Taesan watched as Leehan’s hand guided his, smoothly making neat loops. Was it weird that he found this hot? Taesan never thought a fish nerd would be the first person he fell for.

Taesan’s DIY fly lure was nowhere near as perfect as Leehan’s, but he was pretty proud of it regardless. He quickly snapped a photo to send to his dad. The two of them sat there patiently, quiet conversations filling the space. Before they knew it, almost an hour had passed without any bites on either of their rods.

“Are there even any fish in here…?” Taesan asked, peeking over the railing and squinting his eyes.

“Maybe they’re not hungry…” Leehan spoke with a pout.

Just as Taesan was about to propose another bet to see who could catch a fish first, he felt a tug on his rod. He let out an undignified yelp that sounded like a cat’s meow. With the use of his muscle memory and a bated breath, he finally reeled in his catch, holding it with his mouth agape.

“Dude, I was just about to make a bet about who would catch a fish first. I should’ve said it five minutes ago,” Taesan groaned, disappointed at his missed opportunity.

“Well, I, for one, am glad you didn’t. That would’ve left me in a losing streak,” Leehan huffed, blowing a strand of hair away from his face. “What would you have asked for anyway?”

Taesan hummed, carefully removing the hook from the fish. “I don’t know. Maybe for you to plan our third, fourth and fifth dates?”

Leehan scoffed, but his eyes sparkled with amusement. “You don’t have to win a bet for me to do that.”

“What about you then? What would you have asked for?” Taesan deflected, secretly pleased to hear Leehan’s verbal confirmation that he wanted to continue seeing him just as much as he did.

Leehan turned back to gazing at the water, eyebrows frowning as he got lost in thought. Taesan watched him in silence, a little nervous to hear what he was thinking so seriously about.

“Hypothetically, if I won that bet, I would ask you to get matching outfits with me in Roblox.”

Taesan’s eyebrows raised in surprise before letting out an incredulous laugh. “What?”

“What, are you too cool to play Roblox?”

“Well, no, I just- don’t play it. Do you want me to?”

“Yeah. Will you play with me?”

Taesan teased, “But you didn’t win a bet.”

Leehan frowned, pouting as he slouched down on his chair, “That’s why I said hypothetically.”

Taesan pulled his chair right next to Leehan’s, satisfied with the singular fish he caught. “I was just kidding. I’ll play with you. If you want.” I would probably do anything for you. Maybe. The rational part of Taesan’s brain supplied.

Leehan seemed appeased, the corners of his mouth upturned slightly. Instead of staring into the water, Taesan could freely look at Leehan without the fear of missing a catch. His hands were now free from holding the rod, mindlessly playing with the loose threads of his jeans.

“Did you know that you have really long eyelashes?” Taesan asked offhandedly, not expecting a response. At this point, he had melted into the chair, head leaning on the back.

Leehan tensed, suddenly aware of Taesan’s wholly attention on him. He gulped before answering, “Uhm, not really. Are they?”

“Yeah. I noticed it the first day I saw you.” A small wave of satisfaction surged in him, seeing Leehan squirm under his attention. Wanting to see how much more his words could impact him, he continued, “I heard that people with deeper voices have a more pronounced Adam's apple. I guess it’s true. Yours moves every time you talk and laugh.”

Leehan brought a hand over his neck, now conscious of it. “Does it really?” He was now obviously flustered, hearing bits and pieces of himself being described from someone else's perspective.

Taesan sat upright, hand circling around Leehan’s wrist and pulling it away. “Why are you covering it? I like it.”

“Okay, stop it, you’re making me shy,” Leehan gently tugged his arm back, trying to cover his blushed cheeks. Taesan relented, letting go and sliding back down in his chair, but not without a victorious smirk on his face.

They stayed in the fishing cafe for another half hour, with 3 more fish caught between the two of them before they left to get dinner. To keep up with the whole fishing theme, Leehan brought Taesan to a nearby seafood restaurant, which was family-run, with interior decoration and aged furniture, making it comfortably homely. This time, Leehan was the one who suggested certain dishes to Taesan and insisted that the seafood jeon was a must-have.

“That was really good,” Taesan sighed contentedly, shoulders brushing against Leehan’s as they walked along the streetlights, enjoying the night breeze. Leehan simply smiled, eyes turning into crescents.

It was cooler now, and the paths were mostly empty, with only pet owners walking their dogs cruising past every once in a while, to which Leehan points at and names the breed of every single one.

“Did you know that most Corgis are actually born with a full tail?”

“What? Really? I don’t know much about dogs. Guess I’m more of a cat person,” Taesan responded, staring at the plump corgi as it walked past them.

“Of course you are.”

“Come on, what does that mean?”

“Because you act like a cat.”

“No, I don’t, I act like a person.”

“Hey, would you ever get a pet?” Leehan asked, ignoring Taesan’s objection.

“Honestly, yeah. I considered adopting a cat when I first moved in… I even looked through the adoption website at the available kitties, but I decided not to. I’d feel bad if I left my cat at home all alone every day while I went to work,” Taesan sighed, remembering a particularly cute calico kitten that caught his eye months ago.

Leehan hummed, understanding the woes of pet ownership, and his family dog back in Busan. “Maybe you could get two cats. To keep each other company while you’re at work.”

Taesan nodded, pondering over it. “That’s actually not a bad idea at all.” When Taesan first moved in, he was too busy getting adjusted and didn’t think he could handle getting more than one pet. But now, he’s practically already taking care of two starving university students, so what’s more, if you add two cats on top of it? He’s sure any animal would be less stressful than taking care of Jaehyun and Sungho.

“I’ll do some research into that then,” Taesan smiled, excited at the reality of actually having his own cats within reach once again. He couldn’t wait to go home and learn more, and possibly spend a ludicrous amount of time browsing through available cats up for adoption again.

When they parted ways, the two made a promise to see each other next week at the party with Jaehyun and Sungho.

Taesan went home that day feeling light and warm.

-

“Woah, are those eye bags or eyeshadow?” Gaon asked, seeing the exhausted Taesan enter the store.

“Eyebags,” Taesan mumbled, trying to rub the sleep out of his eyes.

“Did you not sleep well last night?” Jooyeon asked, eyebrows raised in concern.

“Yeah, I think I only got like, three hours of sleep. I was up looking at cats available for adoption,” Taesan yawned, slipping into the staff room to fix his hair and maybe to summon some semblance of life back into his eyes.

“Oh my gosh! Are you going to adopt a cat? Can I please come over and meet them?” Gaon’s head popped into the room, hands gripping the doorframe. The sudden spawn of Gaon’s face with his wide eyes startled Taesan awake. Taesan flicked him on the forehead, a petty revenge for scaring him.

“Calm down, I’m still considering it. And of course I’ll invite you over. If I do get a cat. Or two.”

“Two?!?!?” Gaon squealed in delight, palm rubbing over the reddening spot where Taesan flicked his head.

“Mhm,” Taesan hummed in acknowledgement. After his research last night, he found out that you had to introduce the cats slowly to one another, so that they could slowly get used to the presence of being around another cat. That would be the plan, unless he found a pair of already bonded cats, which miraculously, he did.

It was a pair of grey tabby cat siblings, one female and one male. They were only six months old, and their photos melted his heart immediately. He clutched his pillow tightly as he scrolled through the pictures at 3 am. Based on the descriptions, the female was friendly and loved getting treated like a princess, while her brother was much more shy and quiet, only wanting to play with his sister as opposed to the other cats in the shelter.

He told himself he didn’t want to rush into it, but realistically, he had been ready since the last time he looked through various adoption websites. So he may or may not have messaged the shelter to ask about the two cats, and he may or may not have been checking on the status of it on the website every hour at work. His heart nearly jumped out of his chest when he finally got a reply back from the shelter, notifying him that the pair were still in fact available, and that they could set up a meeting soon in the same week.

Before he knew it, he was on the bus making his hour-long commute to the shelter. It’s been a few days since he reached out to the shelter, and he was undoubtedly nervous about the meeting. Nervous that the lovely lady he has been corresponding with would think he looked too immature in person, worried that the kittens wouldn’t like him. He wore a soft tie-dye sweater, hoping the material would draw the kittens in to sit on his lap. He sighed, fingers clasping together as he looked out the window, music blaring in his earphones.

When he arrived, he was led into a room by a staff member at the counter and told to wait. The room was small, the walls were white, and the floor was empty aside from a litter box in the corner and a few toys scattered across the room. Taesan mindlessly fidgeted with one of the feathers at the end of the toy, fingertips cold from his nerves, and the air conditioner blasting from the ceiling. Before he could let out a sigh to calm himself down, the silence was broken by the sound of the door opening, with a lady holding two crates smiling right at him.

“Hello! You must be Taesan! It’s so good to meet you in person!” The lady was much younger than Taesan expected. She had long, black hair, and her dimples were deep, always on display even when she was talking.

“Yes, nice to meet you too. Are you Haewon?” Taesan responded politely. Over the past few days, he had been communicating with her, mostly to send information so the shelter could determine if he was a suitable adopter for the cats. Haewon also kept him up to date with how the kittens were doing, sending daily photos and videos of the pair to him, which he replayed over and over. He was absolutely smitten, and if the cats didn’t like him, he would be absolutely heartbroken.

“Yes, that’s me! If you’re ready, I will let them out.” Haewon nodded to the crates she was holding.

“Yes, I’m ready,” Taesan responded, sitting crossed-legged on the floor. From there, he could see the face of one of the kittens, eyes bright and staring right at him. He had to hold back a squeal.

She opened the crates and a second later, a grey cat cautiously walked out, head low and tail high. She hung around Haewon for a bit before making hesitant steps to Taesan. When she was close enough to sniff Taesan, he spoke softly, “Hi, kitty.” He let her sniff him all around, not making a move to touch her in case it scared her away. When she finally pawed at his jeans and jumped onto his lap, his head snapped up to look at Haewon, lips pursed to silence whatever was about to pour out of his mouth. Haewon had a similar expression, hands clenched in fists over her mouth, trying to contain her cute aggression too.

“Oh my god, she’s so sweet,” Taesan all but whispered, now gingerly petting the kitten’s head softly.

“Oh, I know. I love her to death, and I was so relieved to finally get a message from someone interested in adopting both of them. Many reached out only wanting to adopt one of the two siblings, but I couldn’t possibly separate the two.”

Just as Haewon finished her sentence, the other kitten finally made his way out of the crate after observing his sister. He sat down just in front of the crate, not making any moves closer to Taesan. “Hi, you must be her brother, huh?” Taesan coaxed, watching the way the kitten’s eyes turned into slits in the unfamiliar environment. Taesan didn’t move, just continued petting the kitten in his lap, waiting for the other to get comfortable.

“You’re doing well. Have you really not owned a cat before?” Haewon asked, watching the quiet Taesan handle the two kittens.

“No, I just don’t want to overwhelm him,” Taesan responded, heart leaping when the kitten took a few steps closer to Taesan before sitting again. He was now only an arm’s length away.

“That’s the best way to treat shy cats. He gets very playful once he’s comfortable.” Haewon replied, fondly watching the kitten slowly making his way to Taesan.

The male kitten finally made his final stride, settling not on his lap but beside Taesan, his small warm body slightly pressing onto the side of Taesan’s thigh. Taesan mouthed an “Oh my god” to Haewon, in which she bit her fist, excitedly snapped a few photos of the achievement to send to him later.

“I know it’s not finalized yet, but I’m going to be devastated if I’m not the one who gets to adopt them,” Taesan spoke softly, body stiff, not wanting to scare the kittens away. His lower back was starting to kill him, but who was he to make the offensive decision to move when two kittens were crowding around him?

Haewon laughed, “Oh, don’t worry, you seem to be the most prospective option right now. People aren’t as willing to adopt two cats at once as you think.”

“Okay.” Taesan breathed out, heart clenching at the sight of the duo getting sleepy.

After a while, Haewon informed him that their session was up, and they could start discussing the paperwork. He gazed longingly at the two kittens as they were returned to their playpen.

“Here, I’ll send the photos I took earlier to you, as well as more updates on the two of them. I’ll also let you know when everything is finalized.” Haewon stapled some documents together before passing them to Taesan. “Between the two of us, I really do see them being yours.” She smiled, waving him goodbye as Taesan left feeling like he was on cloud 9.

taesan: i went to the shelter to meet the kitties today

taesan: [photo]

leehan: oh my god

leehan: the 3 cutest kitties in 1 photo

taesan: …

leehan: :3

leehan: how were they?

taesan: adorable

taesan: i need them in my life

leehan: you will soon! don’t worry

leehan: i just know you will be a great owner, and i’m sure the shelter can see that too :)

-

Taesan dragged his hand over his face, wet hair sticking to his forehead. He groaned, roughly rubbing his hair with his towel. It was the day he promised Jaehyun and Sungho he would show up with Leehan for the party. He was now at home, fresh out of the shower and about to get ready. His outfit was already laid out on the bed. Black ripped jeans with a top that was sheer at the back. Simple but dressed up just enough for the occasion. The majority of the outfit was going to be his face with his makeup anyway.

He slapped on some grey eyeshadow, laying out the base for his smoky eye before going in with a gel liner. Pumped out some mousse onto his palms, slapped that in his hair too. Added a dab of matte lip mud on his bottom lip before blending it out with the pad of his pinky. When he got ready for parties, he liked to do it messily. Everything usually got roughed up even more by the end of the night anyway, so there wasn’t much point in making anything look neat or perfect.

Taesan slipped on his rings, necklaces, and finally an extra spritz of perfume on the back of his neck and wrists. The scent was probably going to get rubbed off by the skin-on-skin contact of the packed bodies in there. He sighed, bracing himself for the crowd before flipping off the lights and heading out.

When he arrived, Jaehyun and Sungho were already there, standing outside and chatting with some other mutual friend they met in school. Taesan sneaked up behind Jaehyun, blowing in his ear. He waved to their friends politely after laughing devilishly as Jaehyun almost tripped forward from the shock.

“Leehan says he’ll be here soon, by the way,” Taesan told the two of them. They were wearing matching outfits as usual whenever they went to parties (perks of getting ready together, Taesan thinks), with Jaehyun in a fitted white top, silver details diagonally spread across, and black pants styled with a neat belt. Sungho was wearing a white top too, but looser and shorter, a small expanse of his stomach showing.

“Okay, great! How’s the adoption progress going, by the way?” Sungho smiled, happy for Taesan’s decision to adopt the two kittens. When he told the two of them, Jaehyun and Sungho were ecstatic, and even more so after seeing the photos of the kittens. Taesan thinks it’s a good omen that all of his friends are animal lovers.

“It’s going great, actually. It was going to be a surprise, but… I’m actually picking them up tomorrow. For good.” Taesan confessed, his own excitement too much to contain.

Jaehyun jumped up, pulling him into a bone-crushing hug. “Really?! That’s amazing! I’m so happy for you!” Taesan let out a strangled sound upon impact, but his features smoothened out to a genuine smile.

“Yeah, I was worried that there would be complications, so I didn't tell you, but it all went smoothly. I promise to invite you guys over when they’re settled in.”

Sungho patted Taesan’s back, reassuring him. “No worries! It’s exciting, but we can wait. Oh-” He paused, before waving at a figure approaching them.

Taesan pried Jaehyun off, only to turn around and face an angel. It was Leehan, shyly waving back at Sungho. He looked… delicious. Maybe. Taesan dug his nails into his palms to ground himself. To be honest, Taesan had no idea what type of pants Leehan was wearing because his eyes were locked on his midsection, where black strings that ended from the crop top were tied around his waist. He dragged his eyes back up to see that his hair was straighter than usual, framing his already beautiful face even better.

“Hey,” Leehan spoke with a smile, stepping beside Taesan after exchanging side hugs with Sungho and Jaehyun.

“...Hi,” Taesan barely managed to squeeze out, fists clenched at his sides to restrain them from reaching out and doing god knows what. “You look. Really good. Wow.” Taesan managed robotically, his eyes unfortunately wandering all over Leehan, as if he couldn’t help it.

“Thank you, you look really good too. As usual.” Leehan stepped just a bit closer to Taesan, the scent of his perfume wafting into his nose. It was fresh and light, and it was a welcome change from the heavy cologne every other man seemed to load on at parties.

Taesan vaguely heard a smack and a yelp from Sungho before Jaehyun purred, “Yeppi, look at them! They’re so cute! That could be us!”

“First of all, no thanks. Second of all, stop hitting me every time you get excited! I told you my arms are sensitive!”

Their voices tapered off as Leehan grabbed Taesan’s arm, pulling him closer and slightly lower. He whispered, “Wait. Hold on. Are Sungho and Jaehyun not together?” When Taesan turned his head to look at Leehan, his doe eyes were wide and his eyebrows furrowed, clearly confused.

Taesan laughed at his earnest expression, leaning back down and whispering, “I honestly have no clue. They act like a couple, but not at the same time. I don’t think they’re aware that they do that. I never asked because I didn’t want to cause a rip in their reality.”

Leehan’s lips formed a small “O”. He was wearing lip gloss. “That’s surprising. I thought they were practically long-term-relationship-married-couple status.”

Taesan shrugged, replying, “I always thought they would figure it out themselves, but it’s been years at this point.” His lips ever so slightly brushed against a cool metal, eyes flickering down to see silver hoops decorating his ears. What the hell. Everything was driving Taesan crazy.

He felt a tap on his shoulder before he was dragged into the party by Sungho. He made his way in, with his right arm behind him, index finger clutched in Leehan’s hand as he followed him closely. The steady boom of the bass got louder, with more and more people crowding around where the DJ was. The four of them headed to the kitchen, where various canned drinks were on the island. Jaehyun and Sungho opted for a can of beer, while Taesan started mixing a simple drink for himself and Leehan. He exchanged pleasantries with a few familiar faces, easing into the atmosphere, noting Leehan’s big, round eyes fixed on him in his peripheral vision the entire time.

Once they left, Taesan leaned closer to Leehan, asking, “What’s up? Why’re you looking at me like that?”

“Nothing. Just making sure you don’t get snatched away from me tonight,” Leehan answered seriously, taking a sip of the drink Taesan made. It was a mix of soda and vodka, beads of condensation already forming on the cold cup.

Taesan threw his head back as he laughed. What a silly thing for him to worry about. There had never been anyone who caught his eye in his entire life, let alone at this party. “Believe me when I say that will not happen,” Taesan replied lazily, leaning into him.

Leehan’s lips curled, pleased to hear his statement. At this moment, Jaehyun grabbed both of their shoulders, a mischievous glint in his eyes. “Come on, lovebirds, let’s go dance.” The two of them allowed Jaehyun to drag them onto the dance floor, the alcohol pleasantly warming up Taesan’s skin. He made it a point not to look anyone in the eye because it always seemed to come off as an invitation for strangers to walk up to him and chat him up. Through the treacherous journey to the middle of the crowd, Taesan felt a few arms reach out and reach for him, which he gently pried off, without even sparing a glance at the owner of the touchy hands.

The DJ was good, Taesan begrudgingly admitted to himself, letting the music and heavy beats ring through his body. He was starting to feel the heat, a thin sheen of sweat shining on his skin. Both from the packed room and from the hypnotic way Leehan moved.

Just then, he heard his name being shouted behind him, barely audibly over the music. He turned around, eyes lighting up to see Nicholas, hair now longer and platinum white since the last time he saw him.

“Nicho! Long time no see!” Taesan grinned, dapping him up and pulling him closer into a hug. Nicholas was the one who taught Taesan the most when he started working, but eventually left when he had to focus on other things. The two of them exchanged pleasantries, the best they could over the loud music, eventually agreeing to set up a catch-up session soon. Nicholas gave him a solid pat on Taesan’s back like he always used to do, before waving goodbye and setting off to look for his friend group.

The small smile on Taesan’s face froze when he saw Leehan engaging in a conversation with a man taller than him, with an unimpressed look on his face. The jerk was holding a red solo cup, contents spilling out onto the floor every time he moved. Taesan snorted out a laugh when he saw Leehan roll his eyes at the man, obviously miffed by the way he was trying to hit on him. He didn’t want to step in and pull him away like a possessive boyfriend (which he wasn’t… yet) when he knew very well that Leehan could take care of himself, if his attitude directed at the tipsy guy was anything to go by.

However, once he saw the slug reach his hand out to touch Leehan’s waist, he crossed the distance with a stride, claws digging into the man’s thick wrist. “Don’t fucking touch him.” Taesan hissed, eye to eye with the loser. Man, he wasn’t even polite nor was he good-looking? He should be banned from a 10-mile radius of Leehan.

The man took a step back, startled to be suddenly confronted with such aggression. He huffed out, words slurred, “Whatever, man. He’s not even all that.” He yanked his arms back from Taesan, backing away into the crowd. Taesan saw red for a second. “What the fuck.” Taesan spat out in disbelief. He must've just met the biggest idiot in the world, or he had to be blind.

Taesan felt grounding hands wrap around his lower back, the thin mesh material of his top allowing the warmth to ease away the tension in his chest. “What’s this? I thought I was the possessive one?” Leehan spoke into his ear from behind him, a lilt in his voice. Taesan turned around, scanning Leehan’s face. He was smirking, with a glint in his eyes, hands still on Taesan.

“You look awfully happy for someone who almost got felt up by that sorry excuse of a man.” Taesan fixed him with a look, irritation from the altercation manifesting in the form of his knotted brows.

“Hmm… Sorry~ You’re kinda hot when you’re mad,” Leehan purred, not holding back his thoughts as usual. Taesan’s stomach tightened, sober enough to still be embarrassed by the other’s frivolous words, argument dying in his throat. He let himself be dragged by him deeper into the crowd. Jaehyun and Sungho were already lost in the sea of people, but knowing them, they would probably be stuck to each other’s side anyway. They danced and laughed together for the rest of the night until Leehan said he was sleepy.

They stepped out into the cool of the night, ears ringing a little from the music. “Oh, Jaehyun said he brought Sungho home like 30 minutes ago because he wasn’t feeling well,” Taesan informed Leehan, who had his head leaning on Taesan’s shoulder, halfheartedly peeking at the screen. He seemed to become more touchy when he had some alcohol in his system, his eyes glassier than usual with the faintest hint of pink dusting his cheeks.

“I’m hungry,” Leehan mumbled, eyes fluttering close. Taesan poked his forehead, making him stand so he wouldn’t fall asleep on his shoulder. “Come on, I’ll make you supper at my place.” Taesan extended a hand behind him, whilst booking a cab home with his other hand. A familiar warm weight landed in his hand before he led a sleepy and hungry Leehan to the pickup point.

On the ride home, their hands stayed clasped together on Taesan’s lap, Leehan’s head on his shoulder.

“Here, go take a shower while I cook up some ramen. Do you want cheese in it?” Taesan passed a neatly folded stack of a soft towel and comfortable clothes to Leehan.

“Yes, please,” Leehan mumbled, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes.

Taesan ripped the ramen packets open, waiting for the water to boil. This felt really domestic. He wiped the smile off his face when he caught his reflection on the reflective tiled walls. Just as he set down two cups of water for the two of them next to the steaming hot bowls, Leehan walked out of the shower, eyes brighter and more awake than before.

“Yummy,” Leehan murmured more to himself, before flashing a dimpled smile to Taesan. “Thank you.”

Taesan forced himself to nod, chopsticks frozen in his hands. He watched the way his shirt draped over Leehan’s frame, the cut-up collar exposing his collarbones. Leehan’s outfit earlier had him short-circuiting, but this was worse. It felt like he was reduced to a feral dog or something. He blinked hard, absentmindedly feeding himself bites of the noodles. Leehan slowly closed his eyes, and he chewed, sleep enveloping him once more.

“You sleep in my bed tonight,” Taesan stated, not opening the floor up for discussion. With this, Leehan's eyes snapped open.

“No way! I'm the guest, I should take the couch-”

“Nope. This isn't up for debate.” Taesan stood up, clearing away both of their empty bowls. Leehan was silent, and Taesan had a bad feeling he was going to try and convince him otherwise.

“If you don’t take the bed, I’m going to jump you in your sleep.”

“Are you threatening me right now…?

“Or… we could share the bed!” Leehan beamed, proud of his problem-solving skills.

Taesan replied, an eyebrow raised, full of doubt in his voice, “I highly doubt both of us can fit.”

“No, I think we can.” Leehan blinked at him through his lashes, finishing the cup of water Taesan prepared for him. “I’m betting on it.”

“Seriously?” Taesan scoffed, almost amused. Leehan nodded, face serious, a hint of playfulness shining in his eyes.

“Fine. I’ll bet we can’t.” Taesan conceded, throwing a glance at his bed before he disappeared into the shower.

Taesan was wrong. Which means this was officially the first time Leehan won a bet between them. Leehan flipped to his side, now facing Taesan. They were a breath apart. Taesan could make out his features under the dim light of his LED strips. “I’ve already thought of what I’m gonna make you do.”

“Was it not for me to get matching outfits with you in Roblox?” Taesan replied, letting out a huff of laughter. Leehan was so beautiful. His mouth ran dry, heart quickening every time Leehan’s eyelashes fluttered at him.

“No, I thought of something better,” Leehan concluded, flopping back onto his back, eyes closed. He had chosen the big cat plushie to hug close to his chest. Taesan forced his breath to come out even, not wanting to expose the internal turmoil he was having. His heart was swelling, almost painfully so. He wants to keep him here forever. Is this what everyone in relationships experiences? He was missing out on feeling so much till now?

Taesan shifted onto his back, staring at the dim lights on the ceiling. He swallowed a lump in his throat before speaking. “Leehan?”

“Mmm?” Leehan replied, eyes still closed and halfway asleep.

“I have something I really, really want to ask you. But I’ll do it tomorrow when we’re both sober.”

He felt Leehan’s arm move from his giggling before he replied. “Okay.”

When Taesan woke up, he stared at the ceiling for a good few minutes before he was confident that a splitting headache wouldn't attack him from the drinks he had last night. He turned his head to the left, and the sight of Leehan next to him, in his clothes, in his bed, smelling like him, was enough to wake him up immediately. He had half the mind to acknowledge that this was probably weird, but it all disappeared when he noticed how Leehan would crinkle his nose in his sleep, like a bunny.

Taesan chewed on his lower lip, pupils blown wide. He felt insane. So this is why people get into relationships, huh. He felt an all-encompassing wave of jealousy rush over him at anyone who had ever had the privilege of seeing Leehan like this. Knowing him. He wasn’t going to let anyone else get the same opportunity anymore, because he was going to make him his. Hopefully.

He got out of bed, carefully slipping out from under the covers to prepare breakfast. When Leehan stepped out of the room, there was a mixture of the sound of eggs sizzling in the pan and Taesan’s soft humming.

“Morning,” Leehan mumbled, voice deep with sleep. Taesan turned around, taking in the sight before blinking hard and flipping the eggs. “Good morning.” His heart swelled.

“Thank you for the meal,” Leehan’s eyes turned into crescents as he smiled up at Taesan.

“No problem,” Taesan replied stiffly, placing down the plate with the prettier eggs for Leehan. “By the way, are you free today?”

“Yeah, why?”

Taesan smiled, excitement growing in his chest. “I’m adopting the kitties today. Wanna come?”

Leehan gasped, eyes growing wide. “What? Of course!” Taesan filled Leehan in on the full details of what meeting them was like, and how he was still hesitant about what to name them. Leehan listened attentively, eagerly giving name suggestions. Taesan bathed in the warmth he felt in the apartment. Having someone over made his house feel more alive, warmer. Or maybe it was just Leehan. Leehan, who got just as excited as Taesan over the kittens, Leehan who would listen to anything he had to say.

“So? What do you want as your reward for winning the bet?” Taesan asked, stacking up the empty plates and utensils.

“Could you paint my nails?”

“Oh. That’s all?”

“Yeah.”

Taesan chuckled, “Of course. I’d love to.”

Leehan smiled. “Okay.”

Taesan made his way into his room, rummaging through his shelf before pulling out a small tray of nail polish bottles, Leehan right behind him, watching with curious eyes. “What colour do you want?”

“Black to match yours,” Leehan replied, poking through the bottles, before gasping slightly, pulling out a red bottle. “Can you do one nail in red? It matches your hair.”

Taesan felt his insides squirm. Does Leehan even know what he’s doing to him? “Yeah. I can do that if you want.” He choked out. “Do you have anything you wanna listen to?” Taesan pointed to his record with a nod of his head, inviting Leehan to browse through it.

He watched Leehan carefully comb through the records, letting out a small sigh of relief. Get it together, man. Leehan was making him weak. Letting himself be swooned by matching nail designs? Jaehyun would have a field day with this.

Taesan hummed in approval as the familiar notes filled the room. “The carpenters?”

Leehan sat down opposite him, fingers spread out on the table with a grin. “Yup.”

Taesan picked up Leehan’s right hand first, wiping down the nail beds with an alcohol wipe. “This makes the polish last longer,” he mumbled, close enough to Leehan to know he would’ve heard him.

“Wow, you’re so professional.” Leehan mused, watching him do it with practiced ease.

“Which nail do you want red?” Taesan asked, uncapping the black bottle.

“Hmm… This one?” Leehan wiggled his ring finger. They fell into a calm silence, with Leehan biting back his tongue so he wouldn’t distract Taesan, which only lasted for a good 30 seconds. “You know, I noticed that your hands are always cold.”

“Mhm. And yours are always warm.” Taesan responded, not looking up. His tongue peeked out on the corner of his lip, strokes careful to avoid flooding the cuticle with polish. He felt a bit self-conscious about how Leehan’s attention was wholly on him. “Okay, done, give me your other hand.”

Leehan obediently switched his other hand to leave in Taesan’s gentle grasp, carefully resting the painted hand on the table. “It’s pretty. You should do this for me more often,” he teased.

Taesan huffed out a laugh, breath lightly hitting his hands. “Yeah, sure. Whatever.”

Leehan gasped dramatically, hands subconsciously pulling back with the action. “I think you said yes just so you have an excuse to hold my hands.”

Taesan glanced up at him through his lashes, clicking his tongue. “Stop moving.” He held his hands firmer. Leehan zipped his lips, staying silent and watching earnestly as Taesan finished the pinky. He held both of his hands up, admiring the perfect precision Taesan had painted his nails. “Thank you, I really like it,” Leehan spoke in a hushed tone.

Taesan hesitated for a second, biting the inside of his cheek before reaching out, slotting his fingers with Leehan’s, their hands clasped together between them. “Don’t move them. You’ll smudge my hard work.” Taesan mumbled, a light pink heating up the tips of his ears.

Leehan’s eyes crinkled, replying, “Okay.” Ugh. Did handholding always feel this intimate? Taesan looked away, a storm of thoughts clouding his mind. He chewed on his lower lip.

“What’re you thinking about?” Leehan asked, leaning in slightly to catch his eyes.

Taesan stared at him, feeling the floodgates of thoughts and emotions crash out. He swallowed, carefully choosing his words. “... Do you remember last night when I said I had something to ask you today?”

Leehan nodded, tilting his head, prompting Taesan to continue. He looked at him like he had all the time in the world.

Taesan finally flicked his eyes up to meet Leehan’s. “Will you be my boyfriend?” He felt Leehan’s hands go slack in his. “Sorry. I’m selfish. I wanted to ask you in a much grander way, but I can’t wait anymore. Especially after last night.” Taesan’s chest rattled with nerves, clear, bright eyes challenging Leehan’s to say something.

“Really?” Leehan whispered, eyes wide, glittering from streaks of light that shone through the blinds, his hold on Taesan’s hands tightening, firm and warm.

“Yeah.” Taesan took that reaction as a good sign. “Will you be mine?”

Leehan pursed his lips into a thin line before snapping his head away, showing a faint blush crawling up his neck. “Really?” He asked again, he peeked at Taesan through the corners of his eyes, too shy to face him straight on.

Taesan’s face was probably matching the colour of his hair at this point. “Yes. I’m not repeating all of that.”

“I can’t believe the hottest guy I’ve ever seen just asked me to be his boyfriend,” Leehan mumbled dreamily, words sounding faraway, almost in disbelief.

Taesan retracted a hand from Leehan’s warm palm, trying to cover his last bit of sanity. “Oh my god, stop. So are you saying yes?” His words were muffled by his hand covering his face. He felt like he had to bite something before he passed out from all the feelings he was feeling.

Leehan held his wrist, gently prying his hand away so he could see his face. “Yeah. I want to be yours.”

-

“Woah, Taesan just posted after like, 80 years,” Jaehyun announced, stuffing his mouth with chips.

“Dude, I told you to stop eating on my bed!” Sungho groaned, shoving Jaehyun with his shoulder for him to make some space for himself on the bed. “Let me see,” Sungho popped his head right next to Jaehyun’s.

“Yeppi, your hair is blocking my entire line of sight. I can’t see anything. It’s also going in my nose.”

Sungho ignored him, tapping the notification before gasping. “Oh my god!” Sungho squealed, delight clear in his voice.

“What?! What?” Jaehyun pushed Sungho’s head away with a finger before letting out a shriek. “Oh my god! Our baby has a boyfriend!” Phone thrown on the bed haphazardly, Jaehyun crashed his body into Sungho’s, both of them jumping around the room with glee.

On the screen of the forgotten phone, it was displaying a photo of Leehan on Taesan’s profile, showing off his painted nails, his face partially covered, with a caption simply stating: “boyfriend”.

-

-Epilogue-

Taesan stood before the wooden door, mouth downturned in a genuine display of displeasure. “I can’t believe I actually got talked into doing this,” Taesan grumbled, pushing the green pointed cap away from his eyes.

“Oh come on, it’s not that bad,” Leehan replied, applying a coat of lip gloss instead of his usual lip balm, before spitting out a strand of blonde hair that got caught in the gloss from the wig he was wearing. “Don’t act like you wouldn’t do anything for Woonhakie.”

Taesan groaned, reluctantly grabbing onto Leehan’s hand for emotional support before Leehan keyed in the code to his and Riwoo’s apartment, except it wasn’t just Riwoo on the other side of the door today. The couple had gotten ready together in Taesan’s apartment, dressed in a matching Link and Zelda outfit, in theme for the Nintendo party that Woonhak so desperately wanted. He called dibs on being Toad from Mario Kart.

The plan was for everyone to show up as a character from Nintendo, and literally just. Play Nintendo. They pushed it back such that the plan fell on Halloween, so that it felt more festive to dress up. But it was to celebrate Woonhak’s finals and an excuse for all six of them to hang out, so it was. Acceptable. Taesan felt incredibly uncomfortable in his costume; the only thing making it better was Leehan being over the moon with their couple outfits. Fine. Whatever.

When the door opened, Taesan was surprised to see the living room was rearranged slightly, the couch pushed back, and the floor covered with bean bags and cushions to accommodate the extra guests. The room was slightly decorated with purple and orange streamers and a singular printed photo of Woonhak’s face on the wall. It was a sweet gesture, but before he could let himself soften, he burst out laughing when he saw Riwoo and Woonhak pop out from the kitchen.

Taesan tried to catch his breath, squeezing out the words between breaths, “What the heck? Your head is ginormous. And I can’t believe Riwoo is Bowser.” The mushroom headpiece Woonhak was wearing made him seem two heads taller than Riwoo, making the latter seem like the least intimidating Bowser Taesan has ever seen.

“What, why’s that so hard to believe? I’m a natural redhead just like him.” Riwoo raised his eyebrows playfully.

Beside Taesan, Leehan was chuckling softly, already pulling out his phone to take photos of the two at the kitchen stove, making popcorn in their costumes.

“Your costumes are genius by the way, it’s awesome that they’re matching,” Woonhak said in response, popping a freshly popped popcorn in his mouth.

“Wait till you see Jaehyun’s and Sungho’s. They might’ve beaten us, I fear. And they’re not even the couple here!” Leehan shook his head solemnly.

“Wait, what? Are they not together together?” Riwoo asks, stunned.

Just then, the doorbell rang, the four of them exchanging expectant glances over the last two’s costumes. Leehan opened the door, glancing at the guests before dramatically placing a hand over his heart, announcing, “Sungho has out-princessed me. This is a travesty.”

Top princess candidate #1 steps into the house, rolling his eyes at Leehan’s dramatics. “Oh, come on, I didn’t even want to wear this! Jaehyun made me!” Sungho shouted with red dusting his cheeks, irritably pulling off the white gloves that came up to his elbows.

“No, but you guys totally see it right? He totally pulls it off! He actually looks like a princess!” Jaehyun followed in right after Sungho, the sight of the obnoxiously bright red cap and fake moustache made Taesan burst out laughing again.

“Princess Peach and Mario? This is amazing,” Riwoo laughed, his canines on display.

“Why do you actually look like her, though?” Woonhak squints at Sungho, impressed with the choice of costume.

“I told you! You’re so pretty, Yeppi~” Jaehyun placated, puppy eyes shining at Sungho.

“Ugh, whatever, man. I’m taking the wig off later. It’s so scratchy.”

“Could you guys take photos of us together before he rips off the costume?” Jaehyun said hurriedly, making Sungho wear the gloves again with a curse under his breath.

“Sure! Let’s all take photos before we get down to business!” Riwoo agreed, setting down the two big bowls of fresh popcorn.

Taesan took this opportunity to lean into Leehan, whispering, “Don't worry, you're still the prettiest princess to me.”

Leehan bumped his shoulder with Tasan's, holding strands of the wig to cover his blush.

“Ugh!!! They're flirting!!!” Woonhak shouted, pointing at the two of them with a scandalized expression.

Taesan rolled his eyes, retorting, “Is it such a crime to flirt with my boyfriend?” To which Woonhak shouted a bunch of unintelligible words.

The six of them filled the usually tranquil house with laughter, shouting and banter. By the end of the night, parts of the costumes were strewn all over the house, and competitive spirits were finally drained after 3 hours of straight gaming. They had now moved to snacking on random candy in a big glass bowl that Taesan was pretty confident was used to be an actual fish bowl. They were watching Coraline on the TV, and all the lights in the apartment were turned off.

“What even is this? I’ve never seen this brand before,” Woonhak held up a taffy with unfamiliar packaging before unwrapping it and popping it in his mouth, all the same. His head was on Taesan's lap, the mushroom hat long forgotten.

All six boys ended up sitting on the floor, cuddled up against each other and using the couch as a backrest more than anything. The floor space had been upgraded, with Leehan and Riwoo adding blankets and pillows from their rooms.

“I have no idea. I just grabbed a pack of whatever candy they sold in the snack aisle.” Riwoo replied, popping a sour candy in his mouth, face scrunching from the taste. He sat up with a mischievous grin and untangled his limbs from Woonhak’s, unwrapping another sour candy and holding it before Woonhak’s mouth. The younger automatically opened his mouth, accepting the candy before his face twisted, mirroring Riwoo’s earlier expression.

“What was that?! Ugh…” His nose scrunched in displeasure from the shock of the sour after the sweet taffy. Taesan huffed a laugh at the scene, Woonhak flinching from the taste, and Riwoo gleefully laughing at how he ate the candy without second-guessing it.

“You’re the one who opened your mouth and just ate whatever Riwoo fed you.” Taesan ruffled the youngest’s hair. Woonhak grumbled, not having a retort because what Taesan said was true. How cute.

“Man, this movie scared me so bad when I was a kid. I cried to my mom about it.” Leehan mumbled, head on Taesan’s shoulder. In his lap were a mix of gummies he picked out from the bowl. Taesan sneakily stole one.

“Tell me about it,” Jaehyun responded with a slight lisp from the two lollipops in his mouth, hands playing with Sungho’s hair.

“Myung Jaehyun. I just felt your spit on my neck. Why can’t you eat them one at a time like a normal person?” Sungho wiped his neck, resigned, as if this had happened multiple times before.

“Oops, sorry,” Jaehyun swallowed, careful not to tick Sungho off again with his candy-flavoured spit. “Because I want to taste two flavours at once. This might be like a lollipop meta strat. You don’t understand the party my mouth is having right now.”

Woonhak cleared his throat, shyly getting the attention of everyone. “Uhm, by the way, thanks for agreeing to do this whole party thing. I know it was kinda silly, but I had a lot of fun hanging out with you guys today.”

Everyone cooed at the same time, making Woonhak immediately cover his face with a pillow, screaming into it to drown out the sounds of everyone coddling him.

“You’re softie, Kim Woonhak.” Taesan teased, trying to wrestle the pillow away from him.

Leehan snorted, “And you’re a bigger softie for going along with it.”

Taesan sighed, “I guess so. What have you guys done to me?”

-

myungpuppy posted a story

[Photo]

“me and my beautiful princess yeppi”

Taesan scoffed before letting out a snort at the slight frown on Sungho’s face. He clearly wasn't too happy about it.

giantmountain posted a story

[Photo]

me and MY beautiful princess

-

“Hey, remember when you gave me that bracelet in the frozen yogurt store all the way back when we first met?” Leehan asked, lying upside down on Taesan’s couch, a sleeping cat nestled neatly on his chest. The sister of the cat siblings had taken a particular liking to Leehan, always snuggling up against him when he sat down.

“Yeah, why?” Taesan replied, eyes still on the other cat in his lap. The kitten he once knew had grown much bigger since the first time Taesan saw him, and was no longer as shy either. Taesan smiled, watching his eyes close shut, enjoying the head pats.

“That day I told Woonhak I would make you my boyfriend.”

Taesan’s hand paused. “What? But that was way before our first date.”

“Yup. I’ve been plotting on you since the beginning,” Leehan smirked. “Woonhak said he approved, by the way. Might’ve even jumped for joy.”

Taesan huffed out a laugh, the scene painted vividly in his head. “It’s too late for me to escape now, huh.”