Chapter Text
Jeongguk stared at his boyfriend almost reverently, brown eyes tracking the other’s every movement as he leaned against the doorframe to their room. Taehyung must have noticed the stare as he stopped messing with his hair completely, rolling his eyes at the younger male.
“Whatcha staring at, creep?”
Jeongguk grinned, all lazy and adorable just how Taehyung liked. “Your hair is fine babe, can we go now?”
“The shoot isn’t until 10, chill a little,” he grumbled, finally moving away from the dresser and into the living room, brushing past Jeongguk without even a glance. It was fine though, Jeongguk was pretty used to the other’s antics.
“You’re so grouchy in the morning,” he teased, going to pinch Taehyung’s cheeks. The other wouldn’t let him though, lips puckered up into a pout.
So cute, Jeongguk mused.
“Well, you’re—you’re annoying, so...”
Jeongguk could only huff out a laugh as he made his way out of their apartment to the elevator with Taehyung in tow.
“Whatever you say, babe.”
Turned out, all of Taehyung’s energy spent on his hair was for nothing. The moment they arrived on set, the stylists and makeup artists ushered them into the makeup room. Jeongguk didn’t think he would have anything to be touched up on, but apparently the staff still found little imperfections on his face and... hair too. He didn’t complain though, knowing that they were just doing their job. Taehyung on the other hand...
“Uh, I think my face is okay the way it is? I’d prefer it if you don’t put anything on my face. I’m pretty allergic to some makeup stuffs.”
“Oh, but... can I just, like, pat some powder on? And maybe draw your eyebrows a bit—”
“Please don’t touch my eyebrows.”
Jeongguk’s lips betrayed him as a few chuckles escaped his mouth as the makeup artist dabbed some concealer on his imperfections.
“Jeongguk... what are you chuckling at? Tell this Miss to leave my face alone,” Taehyung grumbled yet again, and from the corner of his eyes, he could see the arms crossing on his boyfriend’s chest. Taehyung was truly annoyed then.
“They’re just doing their job, baby.”
“Yeah, well, I don’t like it.”
“His eyebrows are fine, Miss. I think just some foundation is okay. Is that okay, Tae?” The woman working on his face finally stepped away, his makeup done. It was just a simple one anyway, and Jeongguk was okay with it. His hair looked much better too, fitting with the shoot they were going to film today.
Taehyung’s skin was a little sensitive, though, prone to little acnes if he put on the wrong stuffs on his face, so Jeongguk understood his unwillingness to be touched up. He swivelled his chair so that he could face his boyfriend, who had finally relented and was resting his head back against the soft leather chair. He shot the girl an apologetic look, knowing how tough Taehyung could be sometimes. The girl simply smiled.
Jeongguk was no strangers to impromptu invites to photography shoots and whatnot, being a content creator on the rise. He shot to (mediocre but nevertheless) fame when a popular instamodel reposted his cover of Dean’s Half Moon on her instagram page. Since then, people had been flocking to his youtube account to seek more of his covers and he had been pleasantly surprised. Now though, he had started to dabble with producing his own music, craving the bone-deep satisfaction of creating his own music.
Taehyung was more popular for his comedic acts using the Dubsmash app (back when the application was still widely used). Now that it was no longer a ‘thing’, he started to create his own content with his sidekick Jimin, a friend back in college. Sometimes he would create these little relatable skits and post them on his instagram, other times he would just vlog about his day that included Jeongguk. The fact that there were people who were interested in their every day life weirded Jeongguk out at first, but he began to accept it. People had different ways of coping with their life, and sometimes people just liked those things as background noise as they went about their day. Who was Jeongguk to judge, right?
Being a ‘youtube celebrity’ as most people put it did benefit them a lot. And Jeongguk never failed to thank his fans (a fact that he still had trouble processing sometimes because he actually had fans? What the fuck?) every day for supporting him and his little endeavours. He had been on some newspapers, different sorts of magazines and TV shows, and though it was hard to go through that alone without Taehyung with him all the time, he managed to tamp down his anxiety and shyness over time.
Now that everything was settled, he offered an outstretched palm to his boyfriend. A soft smile hovered over Taehyung’s lips as he took it and intertwined their fingers, standing up and walking together to the destined set.
They were shooting a short media content, a series known for its LGBTQ content in South Korea. The one they were shooting today was for a blind kissing challenge, sponsored by makeup companies based in Korea. From what the PR staff had explained to them in an email, one of them were going to have to put on lip balms and have the other blindfolded as they tried to kiss their partner and comment on the texture, feel and scent of each lip balms. They would also have to rate the products. It was kind of bizarre, but anything for generating views Jeongguk guessed.
Taehyung had been excited though, seeing that he was an avid lip balm fan. Shopping in a drug store with him was part-torture and part-intriguing. Jeongguk wasn’t aware there were so many types of lip balms with varying scents. The one he’d been using was scentless, and he liked it that way.
A pretty man greeted them as they walked on set, pastel pink backdrops surrounding them and big cameras and a few staff loitering around.
“Hi! I’m Seokjin. I’m honoured to have you guys today.”
Jeongguk shook his hand first, having to untangle his fingers from his boyfriend’s, Taehyung following with a warm smile on his face. They made short introductions, although they knew Seokjin must have known them anyway.
“It’s a pretty set,” Taehyung remarked. Seokjin smiled, all formal and polite, but not lacking any warmth.
“Pastel is in nowadays.”
Jeongguk agreed. After a brief explanation on what today’s episode would be about, Jeongguk and Taehyung took a seat in the middle of the set.
“So, who would be blindfolded?” Seokjin asked while re-arranging his cue cards. Jeongguk silently watched as Taehyung pursed his lips, seeming to be in thought.
“I don’t mind being the one. I mean, Tae’s the one obsessed with lip balms.”
Taehyung slapped his arm lightly in retaliation, probably embarrassed at being exposed. Seokjin chuckled, then turned to face one of the staff standing next to him.
“So later on you should give the blindfold to Jeongguk-ssi alright? But before that, we’ll start a little question and answer session with them.” The tall male staff nodded.
Once the PD bellowed an ‘action!’ Seokjin began the session. His seat was near the PD, out of the camera frame, and Jeongguk saw him jerking slightly in his seat. Jeongguk swallowed a laugh back down his throat.
“Hi guys. In your opinion, how many times in a day do you kiss?”
Jeongguk almost chortled. He was sure the expression on his face was one of surprise if Seokjin’s amused smile was any indicator. Taehyung was quick to answer with a chirpy reply, “Mm, I think about 5 times a day?”
Jeongguk furrowed his eyebrows, still unable to process the question. He knew they were here for a kissing challenge, but still... that kind of question seemed awfully personal. And Taehyung’s answer was wrong too, so Jeongguk had no other choice than to correct him.
“I don’t think so...? We kiss a lot. It’s not like we count it every time we kiss.”
Seokjin nodded. “Why do you kiss usually?”
Another ridiculous question, Jeongguk thought.
“Because I want to,” Taehyung laughed, somehow finding it funny. Jeongguk almost wanted to reply with, “Because we’re horny,” but he reined it in, knowing that it would be published next week and he would rather not make a fool out of himself.
“Because... well, Tae’s lips are...” he paused, unwilling to continue his line of thought. Seokjin looked expectantly at him, and he could feel Taehyung’s curious stare on the side of his face. “Um, nice.”
Taehyung let out a huff, and Jeongguk wondered if he had offended the other with his simple answer. Of course Taehyung’s lips were more than nice, but he wasn’t going to wax poetry about it on camera.
Before he could give it another thought, Seokjin swooped in with another question. “What kind of lips would trigger a kiss, in your opinion?”
Jeongguk played with his lower lip, thinking about the last time Taehyung’s lips had looked particularly inviting. It was last night; they were preparing to go out for dinner with Yoongi and Jimin and Taehyung had dabbed on a cherry scented lip balm on his plump lips and it had glistened so beautifully, reminding Jeongguk of the image of his lips slick with spit after a stellar blowjob. He didn’t waste any time striding over to a startled Tae and cupping the back of his head before crushing their lips together almost roughly. Jeongguk never had a good sense of patience when it was Taehyung related anyway, especially concerning the other’s body parts. His lips had felt so soft under Jeongguk’s own and the cherry taste only propelled him harder into the kiss, tonguing the seams of Taehyung’s lips hungrily.
A snap of fingers right before his face brought him out of his recollection. Flustering, he rubbed the back of his neck in a nervous tick as he answered, “Shiny lips? The state of it after you put on a lip balm, I guess. It looks soft and uhm, sexy somehow.”
He briefly glanced at his boyfriend, who seemed to recall last night’s events too judging by his fidgeting. Jeongguk pursed his lips, repressing a smirk.
Then the PD cried, “Cut!” and he felt his form deflating in relief. He was kind of tensed and it was getting warmer in the studio. Seokjin gave them a thumbs up before nudging the male staff to hand Jeongguk the blindfold.
Oh god, this was only the start. He didn’t think he could go through the whole shoot, kissing Taehyung while they were being recorded. And for it to be viewed by possibly thousands of other people? It was disconcerting, somehow. But Taehyung’s hand came to grasp his thigh softly, and he quirked his lips up into a small grateful smile.
“I love you,” he whispered as Taehyung took it upon himself to put the blindfold on him. It was just a simple sleeping mask, one that Jeongguk could easily slip on his head, but Taehyung was adamant on putting it on for him.
“You’re so cute. I love you too. You better say nice things about the products, they might give us a basket full of it later.”
Jeongguk laughed out loud at that. Trust Taehyung to be excited over freebies.
“Okay baby, I’ll try.”
“Good.” Jeongguk could hear the fond smile in Taehyung’s tone and it caused him to grin.
“All good, you ready?” Seokjin asked, and maybe Taehyung gave him a thumbs up or something cos a few moments later, the PD cried out an, “Action,” again.
A few seconds passed before he felt Taehyung nudging his thigh. They were seated face to face now and Jeongguk struggled to find Taehyung’s lips now that his sight was bathed in darkness. They were the same height so if he was right, the other’s face would be around... his lips met what he assumed was Taehyung’s cheekbone, making the other snort. He wanted to laugh too, but he cleared his throat instead. In one occasion his nose had poked the sharp edges of his boyfriend’s sharp jawline, and after a few other failed attempts, he began to slowly trail kisses upwards until it met the other’s lips.
It felt perfectly moisturized, and after a careful sniff, the scent of honey began to fill his senses. It was very pleasant, and it made him want to devour his boyfriend’s lips, but Taehyung’s stifled laugh against his lips reminded him of their situation right now.
He pulled away when Seokjin asked him to describe the product. “It was moisturized, like it was kind of perfect? His lips felt so soft and it has a very pleasant honey smell, the kind that makes you feel like eating it? I kind of, uh, I kind of wanna kiss him again.”
That brought about a few chuckles from both Taehyung and Seokjin, and he rubbed his nape again, shyness creeping up his spine.
“What is the rating for this product, out of 5 stars?”
“4 out of 5?”
Seokjin must have nodded his head because they were now moving on to the next item.
This time, he was saved from the embarrassment of blindly reaching for Tae’s lips as Taehyung took the initiative of cupping his cheeks to direct him towards his face. He silently thanked the Gods for giving him such an angel as his boyfriend and landed a soft kiss right on the other’s scentless lips. Turning his head slightly, he pressed deeper into the kiss, chasing for some kind of taste. Taehyung let out a quiet squeak, probably not expecting such a move on Jeongguk’s part. After a few seconds, he pulled away, noting the slight difference between the two lip balms.
“It’s scentless? No taste whatsoever. Kind of like the one I normally use. And um, I don’t know but Taehyung’s lips don’t really feel moisturized? It’s kind of, what’s the word, ah—”
“Matte?” Taehyung supplied, and Jeongguk nodded. It had felt a little dry, and he voiced this out.
“It’s not really good to use during cold seasons. Would just make your lips more chapped, I think. I would rate it 2 out of 5.”
He heard Taehyung humming in agreement. When Seokjin announced the last item, Jeongguk quietly sighed in relief. He almost felt suffocated and dizzy now. He had opened his eyes at some point, and went cross-eyed behind the sleeping mask. It was getting uncomfortable.
This time, he had thought Taehyung was going to help him again, but Seokjin probably asked him not to because now he was left grappling for Taehyung’s face blindly again. Soft chuckles resounded through the set and Jeongguk huffed, feeling betrayed for some reason. But nevermind, he was anything but a quitter, and with a renewed sense of vigour, he leaned forward gently, head turning left and right to find its ultimate destination.
His forehead felt sticky when it collided with Taehyung’s plump lips. He hoped it was a colourless one cos he didn’t really feel like having coloured stains all over his face. An idea popped into his mind and he tried it, changing his tactics.
Trailing the tip of his nose against the side of Taehyung’s face, his mouth finally came in contact with the corner of Taehyung’s lips, and he pecked the skin there first (causing the other to giggle adorably) before pressing a kiss right where it was supposed to. The other’s lips felt very soft to the touch, almost wet, and Jeongguk could taste the heavy mango scent without even searching for it. It tasted pleasant, but it was a bit too slippery(?) for him.
“I bet Tae’s lips looked shiny as heck right now? It felt shiny to me.” Taehyung’s hearty laugh confirmed his suspicions.
“The mango taste is very strong. I don’t know whether to like it or hate it,” he continued, lightly wiping his lips on the back of his hand.
“I like it, though. I over applied it, I think? With this product you can just dab a little and you’re done.” Taehyung explained, and Jeongguk ‘ah’-ed in understanding.
“I’ll give it a 3.5 out of 5.”
Seokjin allowed him to take off his blindfold and he had to squint a few times to regain his sight. The lights were suddenly too much for his eyes and he had to press the heels of his palms on his eyelids. Taehyung’s concerned face came into his view once he opened his eyes, and he stroked the other’s nape softly, grateful for his concern.
The smile he received was blindingly bright, and all Jeongguk wanted now was to go home and maybe cuddle the fuck out of Taehyung. All that kissing and no touching was driving him mad. He couldn’t possibly sit in this plastic chair any longer.
After a short break, they were now back in their seats, this time facing the camera again. Taehyung looked so pretty with his cheeks flushed and Jeongguk probably looked the same too. Seokjin applauded them for being cooperative and they smiled.
“It was fun trying out different types of lip balms. My lips feel extra moisturized now,” Taehyung laughed. Jeongguk reckoned he had a fond smile on his face as he gazed at his boyfriend.
“I realized the importance of moisturized lips now. What’s the first brand? I like that one the most.”
“Ah, it’s W.Lab’s Honey lip balm. You’d buy that for Taehyung-ssi?”
Taehyung looked at him expectantly, but Jeongguk surprised him when he said, “I think I’ll buy one for myself.” The crew around them laughed at his unexpected reply.
“Really? Jeon Jeongguk would finally wear something other than scentless chapsticks?”
“I’m a changed man.”
Taehyung stared at him in disbelief, mouth agape and eyes widened. Jeongguk shrugged and smirked at him in reply.
“Well, for me, I prefer the mango scented one. It’s from Hope Girl, I think?”
Seokjin nodded, looking at the cue card in his hands. “Thank you for being our guests on this week’s episode, you guys have been very fun and I can’t wait to collaborate with you guys again.”
“It’ll be our pleasure,” Taehyung said, and though Jeongguk, personally, wouldn’t want to join another show like this, he still thought it was kind of fun.
The show wrapped up soon after, and Taehyung cracked up when Jeongguk began to stretch his back and the sound of bones popping reverberated around the studio.
“I can’t believe you’re younger than me. My Jeonggukie is getting old,” Taehyung cooed, tickling him under his chin. Jeongguk basked in the attention, choosing to tune out Taehyung’s teasing words completely.
He wrapped an arm around the other’s waist as they finished greeting the whole crew, including Seokjin, and made their way to the car parked outside. It was nearing winter now and the air had turned chillier as the days passed by. Taehyung stuck his hands into the kangaroo pocket of Jeongguk’s hoodie, making him smile fondly at the other’s cute act.
“Cold?” Jeongguk asked, nuzzling his nose against the other’s temple. Taehyung muttered a small ‘mm’ and burrowed deeper into the one-sided embrace.
“You could walk like this? It’s funny,” he remarked, quietly chuckling at the way Taehyung had to keep up with Jeongguk’s steps. It was quite a feat, seeing that Taehyung had to bend down a little since they were the same height. They were definitely not one of those couples with cute height differences; they were two giants instead.
“My back is aching a little,” Taehyung confessed, finally deciding that it was hard to walk that way as he took his hands out. Jeongguk silently bemoaned the loss of heat near his tummy.
“Did you have fun today?” Jeongguk asked, rubbing the back of Taehyung’s neck to transfer some of the heat. His body had always run hotter than Taehyung’s anyway.
“Yup! I hope they’ll deliver the lip balms quickly, can’t wait to use them.”
The PD had told them that they would deliver the 3 items in a neat package to their house later this week as they would need to get the new products from the respective companies. Taehyung was elated to hear that, of course, and despite Jeongguk’s silent demeanour, he was excited too. He did say he liked the honey one after all.
“You just want me to kiss you all the time when you wear them,” Jeongguk teased, poking him on the tummy. Taehyung made a face, the one where it would go all scrunched up and ugly, but it only made Jeongguk laugh out loud.
“You’re hungry for my lips even when they’re naked, so...”
When they finally got into their car, Jeongguk decided to pick on him, saying, “Well, I agree about the naked one for sure,” resulting in a light punch on his bicep. Thank God for muscles, really.
“Okay now be on your best behaviour. I wanna record a snap. Try and look cool while driving,” Taehyung had commanded and Jeongguk only shook his head, amused.
When Taehyung put up his phone and began recording, chattering about his experience today, Jeongguk only smiled as he pulled out of the parking lot.