Work Text:
“Are you actually pulling another all nighter?”
“Midterms,” Hongjoong says, groaning. “We have another exam tomorrow but I’ve been working on all the other papers I also have due tomorrow. So, have not studied at all.”
“That explains the redbulls hanging out of your bag.” Mingi says with a laugh.
“Yeah, I’m planning on stopping by the cafe on campus too.” Hongjoong sighs, “Then I’m gonna head over to the library and work ‘till I pass out.”
“It’s already 5pm, you’re seriously planning on staying there?”
“I mean, yes? I already finished my classes for today and this is my highest priority. So yeah, unfortunately.” Hongjoong throws his head back, whining thinking about the amount of material he's gonna have to read over.
“Well,” Mingi says “I’ll buy your coffee. At least that's one good thing to happen today.”
“No Mingi, you don’t have to do that.”
“No, seriously. Let’s go.” Mingi grabs his hand, dragging him the rest of the way to the cafe.
~~~
The sun is long gone by the time Hongjoong feels like he has time to breathe.
He brings his headphones down onto his neck, hard blinking to get his eyes readjusted to the world around him.
An empty coffee cup still sits in the middle of the table. The one Mingi had bought him. Mingi has been checking in on him throughout the evening. Texts every hour, asking how he’s doing. Thinking about how endearing Mingi is brings a smile to his face.
He flips his phone back over and goes through the messages he’d gotten. Scrunching his eyebrows when he sees a ‘What floor are you on?’ from Mingi.
‘It’s midnight?’ Hongjoong responds.
‘Yeah. Where are you?’
‘4th floor’
Hongjoong didn't get a response back from Mingi after that. And it’s about 15 minutes later when another cup of coffee appears in front of his eyes.
Hongjoong blinks, taken aback. He looks up and locks eyes with Mingi.
“Feeling tired yet?” Mingi says with a smile.
“Is this for me?” Hongjoong says, raising his eyebrows.
“No, actually I just got two for myself.”
“Haha.” Hongjoong says, slightly shaking his head, and taking the cup from Mingi. “That’s two drinks you’ve bought me today.”
“You’ve been here all day, have you even eaten?” Mingi asks, sitting down across from Hongjoong.
“Yeah, of course.” He says motioning over to the various wrappers on the side of the table.
“So, when are you planning on going home and eating real food?”
“Uhhh, not sure honestly. I mean technically I’m almost done studying.”
“You should go home then.”
“Mingi, we both know if I go home right now I’m done studying.”
“How about you go for another hour and then we both go home.” Mingi says, pulling his laptop out of his own backpack.
“You’re gonna stay with me?”
“Yeah, why not.” Mingi says, shrugging his shoulders.
Hongjoong rolls his eyes, he moves his headphones back onto his head. He hides his face behind his laptop screen and smiles.
~~~
It’s another hour later when Hongjoong looks up from his laptop again. He expects to meet Mingi’s eyes but he's met with blond hair instead.
Mingi is face down with his arms on the table.
Hongjoong can't help but smile. Mingi had been so determined to stay up with him, and now he’s slumped over next to a half empty coffee cup.
He can hear Wooyoung in his ear, talking about his ever growing collection of embarrassing photos of their entire friend group. He picks up his phone, standing to get a better look at Mingi’s face.
Hongjoong snaps the photo chuckling, he brings his phone down and is met with Mingi’s face.
He stops and stares. Blond hair falls over his eyes. The lights from above cast shadows across Mingi’s face. His lips are parted, lightly breathing, smushed by the hand he’s sleeping on.
Mingi looks pretty.
Hongjoong takes a deep breath, straightening back up. No, it's totally cool and normal to think that about one of your best friends. And, it's totally cool and chill to be freaking out about it.
He turns back to his side of the table and starts packing up his stuff, loudly. He sees Mingi start stirring on the other side of the table.
“Hey, you back?” Hongjoong asks Mingi.
“What?” Mingi responds back. Hongjoong can see his eyes are still closed.
“You fell asleep.” Hongjoong laughs.
“Oh shit. I’m sorry.”
“No, don’t worry. I finished everything I wanted to do.”
“Yeah, but I fell asleep.”
“Mingi, it’s fine. We should go home.”
“Yeah, yeah, right.” Mingi rubs his eyes, still evidently sleepy.
Hongjoong hides a giggle, Mingi is impossible not to find endearing, that’s why he finds this display cute. That’s what Hongjoong tells himself anyways.
Hongjoong leans on the table, bag over his shoulder as he waits for Mingi to finish packing up. He watches Mingi stand up swaying slightly, the sleep still not completely gone. He grabs his hand, leading him away and out of the library.
The cold air hits them as soon as the doors open and Hongjoong feels a shiver run down his spine. He squeezes Mingi’s hand tighter knowing the other must feel it as well.
~~~
It's finals week now and Mingi has never been more tired than he is right now.
He hasn't gotten a good night's sleep all week. As soon as he finishes one exam he has another one the next day. That’s why you could currently find Mingi face down in his notebook contemplating his major.
It's the last exam he has for the quarter. One more day and he can sleep in and eat as much food as he can manage over winter break. But right now, Mingi could not be more miserable.
He hears a knock on the table he’s sitting at.
“Sleeping in the middle of the library again?” Hongjoong says, smirking.
“Oh c’mon, like you've never done it.” Mingi says frustrated, “And for the record no, I was not sleeping.”
“Alright, I’ll let it slide.’ Hongjoong holds his hands up, “I guess you don’t need this then though.”
It’s only now that Mingi realizes Hongjoong is holding two coffees.
“Of course I need it.” Mingi groans, “I think I’ve slept a total of 5 hours in the past 2 days.”
Mingi can see Hongjoong chuckle under his breath, as he sets both cups down. He watches as he then sets up his own laptop across from Mingi.
“You’re staying?” Mingi asks.
“I mean, yeah?” Hongjoong says, “Someone needs to make sure you get home okay.”
Mingi knows that Hongjoong is teasing him, joking about his clumsiness and how late it is. But his heart flutters. Thinking about Hongjoong taking the time to take care of him.
Hongjoong is already head down in his work, so Mingi chooses not to say anything else. Afraid his own voice will betray him.
~~~
He loses track of time. His eyes are tired from staring at his computer screen for hours on end, likely bloodshot. An alarm on Hongjoong’s phone jolts them both out of their zombie-like state, too loud in the quiet library.
“Oh shit,” Hongjoong says, running his hands down his face. “The last bus is gonna pass in like 20 minutes. We should head out unless you wanna walk all the way down to the base of campus.”
“We walked last time, no way I’m walking again.” Mingi says groaning, he starts rushing to pack up his stuff.
“Yeah, I know. That's why I didn't wanna miss it this time.”
Mingi registers in the back of his mind that Hongjoong must have set the alarm just for him. Hongjoong makes that walk all the time.
They walk out of the library together, and Mingi can see the foggy breaths leave Hongjoong’s mouth in puffs. He wears a scarf that is easily bigger than his head, it covers all but his eyes.
They get to the bus stop and they can see the bus in the distance, a couple more minutes and they would've missed it.
“We made it!” Mingi says looking back at Hongjoong. He trails a couple steps behind him.
“You walk too fast.” Hongjoong grumbles.
Mingi chuckles, seeing scrunched eyebrows directed his way.
The bus rolls to a stop in front of them, they rush out of the cold and into the bus.
Mingi lets his head hit the back of the headrest, as they both sit down next to each other. The bus is relatively empty, only a couple other students also pulling last minute study sessions. The majority of students have left campus for winter break already.
The bus ride to the bottom of campus isn't too long, but with the amount of stops the bus makes it seems to go on longer than it actually is.
Mingi can feel his eyelids drooping, his eyes burn, needing sleep. He turns to talk to Hongjoong, but finds that he’s already nodding off.
The bus rocks, causing Hongjoong’s head to land on Mingi’s shoulder.
Mingi freezes at the sudden weight on his arm. He turns to see Hongjoong sleeping. He’s careful not to wake him, making small and slow movements. He turns his head to look at the other.
He can’t see much. The scarf hides any part of his sleeping face that might be considered embarrassing. His eyes are lightly closed, twitching with the movements of the bus.
Mingi stares.
He traces the slope of his nose with his eyes before it's hidden away behind fabric. Hongjoong’s long eyelashes cast shadows onto his cheeks.
Mingi’s hands twitch, the urge to brush hair out of Hongjoong’s face strong.
Mingi stares until the bus stops, jolting Mingi away from his thoughts and Hongjoong back awake.
“Alright, everybody off.” The bus driver calls. Mingi realizes they would’ve missed their stop if it hadn't been for this being the bus’s last stop of the night.
He can see Hongjoong take a long deep breath in, as he becomes aware of his surroundings again. He stands up rigidly, looking back to make sure Mingi is ready to follow him.
They’re the last ones to walk off the bus, they thank the bus driver, and begin walking in the direction towards their apartments.
They walk in silence. Hongjoong tries to keep the sleep from his eyes, and Mingi thinks back to the bus ride. About wanting to map Hongjoong’s face with his fingertips.
Hongjoong looks pretty.
He always does.
Mingi snaps out of it when he almost runs into Hongjoong.
“This is your complex right?” Hongjoong says, now facing him with wide eyes.
Mingi blinks confused, he hadn't realized they'd walked that far already. “Your apartment-”
“Good night, Mingi.” Hongjoong says, cutting him off.
Mingi can’t see the bottom half of his face but he can tell that Hongjoong is smiling, His eyes shine and small wrinkles form at the corners.
“Yeah, good night Hongjoong.” Mingi says turning to start walking into his apartment.
“Good luck on your exam!” Hongjoong calls out, not waiting for a response.
Mingi turns around, watching Hongjoong walk back the way they came. Mingi knew he was right about Hongjoong’s apartment being closer.
Hongjoong had walked him home.
~~~
Finals are over and Mingi genuinely cannot tell if he passed all of them or not. But as he sits on the floor in front of his couch he can’t seem to care anymore.
His housemates have all gone back to their hometowns for winter break, but he’s not going home for another couple of days. Hongjoong is in the same boat.
The TV is on in front of him, playing whatever the current ‘Top Movie’ is. He sips on soju while waiting for Hongjoong to get to him. Hongjoong had offered to bring food with him, which is why this night has now turned into a movie night.
Mingi is anxious, he's been skirting around Hongjoong all quarter. He’s not sure when his feelings shifted but being around Hongjoong lately makes him feel like his heart might burst out of his chest. Which is why Mingi is trying to finish the bottle in front of him before Hongjoong arrives.
He takes the last sip and quickly goes to clean up before Hongjoong arrives. He finishes cleaning up right as he hears Hongjoong knock on the door.
Mingi opens the door and Hongjoong holds up the bags he’s holding.
“Your favorites.” Hongjoong says, he smiles but Mingi can hear the tinge of sarcasm in his voice.
Mingi peaks and sees it filled with anything that fit in the bag from the convenience store. He laughs and moves to let him in.
~~~
They’re both sitting on the floor now. Empty cups and wrappers are on the coffee table in front of them. Another terrible movie playing on the TV.
Mingi can feel his eyes dropping, he’s sure his face is flushed and at this point it’s a matter of time before Hongjoong notices and says something.
“The acting in this is so bad.” Hongjoong says chuckling. He turns his head to look at Mingi. “You okay?”
“Yeah, why?” Mingi says, doing his best to sound normal.
Hongjoong doesn’t say anything. Mingi watches as he raises his arm, placing the back of his hand against his forehead. Hongjoong hums, moving his hand down to rest on his neck. Mingi flinches back.
“Mingi…Your checks are red. And I know you’re not sick.” Hongjoong says.
“I had a couple drinks.” Mingi admits.
Hongjoong raises his eyebrow, as if he knows there’s more to the story than Mingi is telling him.
“I was excited about finishing finals,” Mingi lies, “It was before you texted me though, promise.”
“Do you have coffee?” Hongjoong asks.
“Yeah, of course.” Mingi says scrunching his eyebrows, “Why?”
Hongjoong stands up from the floor, making his way towards the kitchen. Mingi follows behind him. He stands in the entryway as he watches Hongjoong begin using his cheap coffee maker, leaning on the counter.
Mingi stumbles forward, he reaches Hongjoong, and leans down to rest his head on the other's shoulder.
“You’re so nice.” Mingi mumbles,
They stand in the kitchen in silence. Mingi can feel a headache coming on, but he doesn’t want to move away from Hongjoong.
Mingi reaches up and wraps his arms around Hongjoong to steady himself. He lets out a groan as he squeezes his eyes shut tighter. He can feel Hongjoong shifting around, until finally he turns around.
“Let’s go sit back down.” He says softly.
Hongjoong leads them back to the couch, now a mug of coffee in hand.
Mingi flops down onto the couch, and lets his head hit the back. He rolls his head to the side to look at Hongjoong. He feels the couch dip, Hongjoong mirrors his pose, smiling lightly at Mingi.
“You should sleep.” Hongjoong whispers.
“Only if you stay.” Mingi lets out, reaching his hand out towards Hongjoong.
The TV is still playing in the background, turning into a non-stop buzz. Hongjoong’s eyes refuse to break contact as he begins to drift into sleep.
“Good night, Mingi.”
~~~
Mingi wakes up to the sun shining in his eyes. His neck hurts, having slept at a weird angle on the couch. He also notices a weight on his shoulder, Hongjoong.
Hongjoong is sleeping, practically on top of him.
Mingi can feel Hongjoong’s breath hitting his neck. His hair tickling his jaw. His hands rest on his chest, and if Hongjoong were awake he’d be able to feel the thudding of his heart against it.
Mingi begins shifting under Hongjoong. He needs to stand up, he needs to get away from Hongjoong before his heart actually stops.
Hongjoong whines, shaking his head deeper into Minig’s shoulder.
Mingi watches as he brings in a deep breath, and blinks his eyes open.
“Good morning Mingi.” Hongjoong breathes out. His eyes trail up to meet Mingi’s.
“Hey..” Mingi lets out, he’s not sure what else to say.
He knows what he wants to do, knows he wants to spill his guts and tell Hongjoong that the past couple of months have been torture to be around him.
Knows that he wants to kiss Hongjoong.
Hongjoong looks up, a small smile on his lips. Mingi can’t help but stare at the soft curve of his lips.
He wants to do it.
Mingi can hear the blood rushing in his ears, can feel his heart beating out of his chest. His mouth is dry. He licks his lips and begins to hype himself up.
He opens his mouth, shutting it again.
“Hongjoong.” Mingi finally lets out. He can see the other raise his eyebrows. “Can I kiss you?”
Hongjoong’s eyes widen slightly, “Yeah...” He whispers.
Mingi can feel Hongjoong run his hand up to rest on his neck. He leans his head down to meet Hongjoong in the middle.
Mingi gasps, a sound that's pushed into Hongjoong’s mouth. If Hongjoong had not been this close he wouldn't have heard it at all.
Hongjoong deepens the kiss, if Mingi had any doubts about his feelings they won’t make it past this kiss. Hongjoong kisses him with the gentleness he has always had around Minigi. As if he means the world to him.
Mingi can feel Hongjoong’s fingers against the base of his head, playful with the strands hitting his neck. Running his thumb just below his ear.
Hongjoong barely slides his tongue against Mingi’s, it keeps to the front part of his mouth. Sliding across the back of teeth, and guiding Mingi’s tongue towards his.
Mingi feels Hongjoong pull back, lips still parted as he cracks his eyes open. He knows his face has to be flushed, and can feel hot breaths mixing in between them.
Hongjoong’s lips pull back into a half smile. His lips glistened from Mingi’s saliva.
Hongjoong cups his jaw, running his thumb along his bottom lip. He pulls Mingi back down, and pecks his lips. They stay close to each other, sharing their warmth and giggling.
Hongjoong pulls back to look at Mingi’s eyes. “Mingi, you never drank your coffee.”
Mingi lets his head fall back groaning, and Hongjoong laughs.