Chapter Text
“Do you think you could talk to him?”, Chan asks him out of nowhere.
They’re in the studio, working mostly in silence. Jisung’s left to get them all coffee, which probably just means he’s getting coffee with Minho in their favourite café down the street and might remember to bring Changbin one later on. He can’t even be mad though. They’re disgustingly sweet together. It’s kind of moving when you’re not exposed to their pda all the time.
“Changbin?”, Chan asks again. Ah, right, he was asked a question. He presses save on the screen and turns to Chan. The older hasn’t looked at him so far. So it’s that kind of talk. Something Chan is either embarrassed to talk about or scared to bring up, because he’s not sure it’s his business. It speaks of his empathy how after all these years he still doesn’t want to step on either of their toes.
“Talk to whom?”, he asks eventually.
“Seungminnie.” Ah, yeah that makes sense. He’s not sure why, maybe it’s the tour, the upcoming end of year performances, but every recording with Seungmin has been tense to say the least. And it’s not because Seungmin is touchy, rather the opposite. He keeps picking apart his singing, finding errors none of them can hear and asking for take after take. Only yesterday Changbin left the two of them to their own devices to get a call, only to return to Seungmin attempting to get another take out of Chan.
“You’re the leader.”, he answers, even though he knows that fact has stopped intimidating Seungmin years ago. Chan turns to look at him unimpressed.
“I know, I know.”, he concedes. “But what makes you think he’ll listen to me?”
He turns away at that. It’s funny how easy his face portrays what he’s thinking. Right now it’s clear he wants Changbin to fill in whatever he’s not sure he can say.
“If you think he listens to me you’re mistaken. He’s as much of a brat to me as he is to you.”, he doubles down.
“Well…”, Chan trails off, still not meeting his eyes, clicking away on something on the screen. “It's not really about that, I think. If he were a brat I could tell him off. There's not exactly anything wrong with what he does. But with you...You have this…power over him. It’s not like he’s scared of you, but…”
“But?”, Changbin inquires.
“I don’t know.”, he sighs and swipes his beanie off to scratch at his head. “Whenever he provokes you, he actually stops. Like you can put him in his place or something. Maybe that’s what he needs to hear in this case too.” Huh. Changbin never thought of that.
"We're just playing around. It's not serious. I mean, you do it too. You make it sound like, I don't know...". Now Changbin feels awkward.
"I think it's different with you. You two understand each other in a different way. And it calms him, I think. Maybe he needs someone he trusts like that to tell him really bluntly that he's being obsessive." Changbin considers his words. It does seem to calm him. Seungmin goes limb in his hold every time. It's much less submission than trust when he leans into Changbin's body rather than try to escape him when he threatens to choke him in a headlock.
"I mean, it would be hypocritical of you to scold him for obsessing.", he answers, not avoiding what he's asked, but not admitting he agrees either. Chan chuckles at that and it eases some of the tension that has built in Changbin.
"Do you ever think I'm being too rough with him?", he asks eventually, facing the subject, because avoiding the elephant in the room has never been his forte. Chan turns to look at him again, thinking for a moment before shaking his head:
"No. I know you worry about that, but you are one of the kindest people I know. It's why I thought you might be the best to get him out of whatever rabbit whole he's dug himself into." He hasn't been insecure of himself in a while, but it's reassuring to hear regardless.
"Thank you, hyung. I'll try my best. You know what's funny though? He kind of is like a dog in that regard. Once he's started digging, he won't stop until he has found what he's set his mind to." Chan laughs out loud along with him.
"Well, then I trust you're best equipped to drag him out of it." And what could Changbin possibly answer to that?
-
Although Seungmin has a lot of dog-like traits, he is surprisingly good at weaselling around too.
It's like he can smell that Changbin wants to corner him, because it's impossible to get a hold of him. Hyunjin and him have plans all the time, now that they've laid their feud to rest. Changbin doesn't think himself much of a schemer, but when he realises he can use Hyunjin to his advantage, he feels like a mastermind.
Seungmin steps through their front door on a random Wednesday, expecting to meet Hyunjin there for a meal outside, but finds Changbin instead, lounging on the couch in the living room.
He frowns, sensing a trap at the take out containers on their coffee table and the two sets of cutlery set out:
"Where's Hyunjin?", he asks.
"He's out with Innie. Hyung's sorry, but you are hard to come by these days." Seungmin looks at him incredulously. He still hasn't moved into the living room, nor has he taken off his shoes.
"You made him lie to me?", he asks, mouth pulled into a frown. Changbin gets up and walks over, brushing a hand through Seungmin's hair, which only serves to visibly annoy him further.
"Don't be silly. Hyunjin can't lie. You're getting a meal from a hyung, aren't you?", he answers, unable to hide his smug grin. He's proud of the "Wanna come over tomorrow evening for a meal? Hyung's treat." , he asked Hyunjin to send.
"I'm leaving, you can finish that food on your own. You could've just asked.", Seungmin huffs annoyed, moving to grab the door handle. Changbin's arm wraps around his wrist, firmer than he is with most of the other members, but not painful.
"And you wouldn't have said no? Just come and eat first, I promise it won't be bad.", he says gently. Seungmin just stands there, unmoving for a while until Changbin lowers his arm again and the younger takes off his shoes.
Four burgers and an obscene amount of fries later - not all his doing, Seungmin eats just fine against what some of their fans think, they forget he's so damn tall - and Changbin feels almost bad for having to bring it up. Seungmin's slumped into the cushions of the couch, head lolled back onto the seat, lanky limbs relaxed in a way they rarely are, ketchup smeared around his mouth. Changbin plans on keeping that piece of information to himself. It might be valuable later, who knows.
"You're perfect, you know that right? You're like a genius.", starting of with a complement, strong and direct. He hopes it confuses Seungmin enough so that he might slip and spill what is bothering him. Seungmin stiffens next to him, but giving away nothing else when he says:
"In what regard?", careful but steady, because Kim Seungmin doesn't stutter or shows when he's lost.
"In all regards. You work so hard, you're so diligent, but you still bring out every shade of emotion. There's so much intellect in how you sound." It must have come off the wrong way, which is exactly what he intended, as bad as it makes him feel. Seungmin sits up, frowning and crossing his arms.
"You don't make it sound like it's a compliment."
"That's because it isn't, at least not entirely. I acknowledge and value your hard work, but maybe not everything needs to be that thought through. Believe me, I love dissecting an emotion to find the right melody or key, but when it comes to the art itself? I think letting go is where the most valuable work comes from sometimes." Changbin knows he sounds like an absolute asshole, but easing Seungmin into it will scare him off before they've gotten to the truth.
Seungmin's lip has jutted out, but his face remains perfectly stoic. He's looking over Changbin's shoulder with a far away look that makes the older feel like maybe he's gone too far. But he knows he hit the nail on the head with this. He can't back down now.
"I mean it when I say you're perfect. But it's not because of all the calculations and all the tries until you get precisely what you think is right. You're the perfect singer, because you have the ability to feel the emotion when you sing." He grabs his chin, swiping a napkin at his mouth to remove the sauce that has smudged there. "You don't need to replicate it. You have everything you need in there.", he continues, placing his other hand on his chest.
He expects the cringe, but not the shudder. He moves to take his hand away, but Seungmin grabs it. He's still not looking at him.
"Don't pretend like you know everything that's going on in my head.", he says, squeezing his wrist. Changbin feels himself smile, directing his face he still hasn't let go of to face him better.
"I don't?", he says, half joking. Seungmin shakes his head, avoiding eye contact at all costs. He makes a sound reminiscent of a growl in answer. Cute, Changbin thinks.
"I think singing is your emotional outlet. On stage that's easy. No one bats an eye if you tear up, if you loose yourself in the emotion. They will assume it's part of the performance. But we know you too well. And when you are alone with us you have no choice, but for us to see it. Even if all you want or need for the perfect take is to feel.
"But it's okay to let us see." He has no idea what he's saying anymore, but he thinks Seungmin gets his point, his eyes shiny as they continue boring into the wall above Changbin's shoulder.
-
He's not sure how much of an impact his talk with Seungmin had until Chan mentions it again.
"Thank you so much for talking to him, seriously. I don't know how you did it, but it worked.", Chan says during another brainstorming session, Jisung's conveniently absent again.
"Ah don't mention it, it's fine." If he's being honest he feels a bit embarrassed. He still feels like he was being too hard on him. But Seungmin hasn't given him a reason to believe so. He's been perfectly normal.
"You had a part with Hyunjinnie too, right? I never thanked you for that. I'm so glad the two of them got that sorted out. You don't know how relieving it is to have you. I think I am good with noticing when something is wrong, but you're good at figuring us out." Chan has turned around to face him, face pulled into that frown as it always is when he means to convey sincerity.
"Don't worry about that. It's nothing I do consciously. After all these years it has become quite easy to read all of you, knowing about your sensitivities. And I gladly mediate when I have a feeling on how to approach whatever issues you might have You are all such feelers.", he adds, because he can't let this slide into deeper territory or Chan will start blaming himself for being too sensitive. Chan predictably rolls his eyes at that.
"Don't pretend you aren't a big softie. You have a such a soft spot, especially for those two.", he says teasingly. He doesn't need to elaborate for Changbin to blush and mumble:
"I do not.", though he absolutely does.
"They really love you, you know?", Chan says anyway.
And yeah, Changbin knows all too well.