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Seungmin and Jisung are standing outside the ranch where the wedding is going to take place, still unable to believe they are actually in Australia, waiting for Jisung’s fiancé, Chan. The older man had left earlier to pick up a friend at the intersection leading to Bawley Point, the small village where the couple had decided to hold their ceremony.
Two days before the wedding, and still waiting for Chan to arrive, Jisung paces back and forth, nervous, anxious, and trembling.
"Jisung!" Seungmin grabs him, starting to get nervous himself. "If he doesn't show up soon, I can use the car I left ready to run away with you!"
"What?" Jisung's eyes widen, snapping out of the dissociative state he'd been in.
"You really think I'd let you marry Bang without trying to take you for myself first?" Seungmin makes an irritated noise and smirks when he notices two men approaching from behind Jisung. "All you have to do is say yes, Jiji, and I'll get you out of this mess."
From an outsider's perspective, someone might actually believe he was telling the truth.
"I swear, Seungmin, if you don't let go of my husband right now, I'm going to be down a groomsman!" Jisung gasps, looking over his shoulder.
As soon as Chan gets within a reasonable distance, Jisung throws himself into his arms and presses a quick kiss to his lips.
"I missed you, baby."
"I missed you too." Chan kisses his forehead.
"You guys saw each other, like, an hour ago." Kim teases.
"Shut up, Seungmin. You're not getting my husband." Chan points a finger at the taller man.
"He's not your husband yet."
The two stare each other down while Jisung sighs.
"Can you introduce us to Minho hyung now?" Jisung tugs at Chan's shoulders.
"Yeah, right. Seungmin's annoying me." Kim opens his mouth to argue, but Chan cuts him off before he can say anything. "Anyway! Minho hyung, this is my fiancé, Jisung, and..." He grimaces. "...one of my groomsmen, Kim Seungmin."
Jisung practically bounces over to Minho and shakes his hand. Seungmin figures it'll take about twenty minutes before Jisung starts ignoring the older man's personal space and hugging him.
"It's nice to finally meet you in person, hyung, instead of through a computer."
"The pleasure is mine, Sungie." The blond then breaks into a smile that makes Seungmin's knees go just a little weak. "You too, Seungmin-ssi. I heard I'll have the honor of being your partner." He looks at the latter.
Seungmin could die right then and there. There was no way a man like this could be real; it simply didn't make sense. He had the perfect nose, eyes shaped in a way that reminded Seungmin of cats, and a slightly fuller upper lip that made his teeth show just a little. How could someone look as cute as a bunny and as sly as a cat at the same time?
Seungmin snaps out of the trance his mind had slipped into when Chan lets out a small laugh. Maybe the wedding would end up losing one of its groomsmen.
"It's nice to finally put a face to the name. Jisungie talks very highly of you." He clears his throat and shakes the older man's hand. "I'm not sure it'll be much of an honor when I start stepping on your feet during the waltz."
And Minho bursts out laughing. God, it wasn't even that funny! Seungmin was so, so screwed.
"Good thing I'm a great dancer." Then he winks at Seungmin with both eyes. Well, he blinks, but still.
"Okay, okay! Introductions are done. Now let's get to the rehearsal! The boys are waiting." Jisung claps his hands and starts walking.
The four of them make their way to the wedding venue. Seungmin is pleased to see that the structures are already set up, with the tables and chairs arranged in their proper places, just waiting for the decorations.
The ceremony area is a little farther into the forest. All the chairs are already lined up there, painted a soft pastel yellow, forming an aisle that leads to a massive tree that will bear witness to the wedding.
He looks at Jisung with tears welling in his eyes, but neither of them says a word. They've both dreamed of this their entire lives. Having a wedding, all these decorations, the headaches that came with deciding on every little detail—they knew exactly what they wanted. Even if Seungmin wasn't the one getting married, being part of something so important to Jisung still felt like a dream come true. Being each other's groomsmen had always been part of that dream.
Everything feels even more real when they reach the friends waiting for them at the end of the aisle. Changbin shouts a "Hyung!" and grabs Minho, and then he, Chan, and Hyunjin fall into a conversation about work and how much they've missed one another.
Meanwhile, Jisung and Seungmin join Felix and Jeongin, who are standing in their designated spots as groomsmen, exactly where Seungmin will be standing too.
Felix, just like Jisung and Seungmin, has tears shining in his eyes. The three of them had been crying into Jeongin's lap earlier.
When the priest and the wedding coordinator arrive to explain how the rehearsal will work, all eight of them listen carefully and take their positions.
Everything goes as it should, much to the delight of Jisung, Felix, and Seungmin. During the vows, the couple only whispers a quiet "I love you," but the words are so full of affection and devotion that Seungmin feels his chest tighten.
By late afternoon, the wedding coordinator herds everyone over to the area where the dance floor will be. The wooden platform, about fifteen centimeters high and wide enough to accommodate several couples, is set up near the tables, beneath another tree. The woman pulls a small speaker out of the enormous bag she's carrying and starts the waltz music.
Kim wishes he could say everything had gone well. He really does. He owes Jisung that much.
But it had been awful.
Minho was great. His hands were gentle and warm against Seungmin's waist, and his broad shoulders fit perfectly beneath the younger man's hands. The only problem was those long, gangly, infuriating legs.
"It's okay, Seungmin-ssi. Just relax and try to follow what I'm doing." The older man gives Kim's waist a gentle squeeze, trying to reassure him.
"I'm trying." He steps on Minho's feet again. "Sorry."
"No worries." They continue rehearsing.
On the third attempt, Seungmin asks for a break, leaving the other three couples to practice the choreography on their own. He was frustrated.
"Sorry, Minho-ssi. I'm terrible at this." Minho simply smiles and hands him a bottle of water.
"That's normal, Seungmin-ssi. It's our first time dancing together, and we barely know each other. It's not going to be perfect right away. Tomorrow, we can practice until our feet fall off."
Sitting side by side near the tree, Seungmin can feel the warmth of Minho's body radiating against his skin.
"And I need to apologize too."
"What? Why?" Seungmin asks, genuinely confused. After all, he was the clumsy one here.
"I haven't had time to rehearse with you. These past two months since I got back from the States have been crazy." Minho holds his gaze for a moment. "I really regret not meeting you sooner."
Seungmin swallows hard. That didn't seem to be just about the waltz rehearsals.
"It's... it's okay. We'll figure it out."
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They had just finished dinner. Chan's mother had insisted on feeding all eight of them while they were in Australia, and now everyone was chatting and getting to know each other better.
Seungmin had discovered that Minho was the son of the owner of the company where Hyunjin, Chan, and Changbin worked. He had taken over the business two months ago; before that, he had been in charge of the US branch. On top of that, he had three cats and loved dancing, which was why he owned several dance studios scattered across Korea, along with the investments his production company made by purchasing shares in other businesses.
In other words, Lee Minho was hot and rich. Very, very rich. Maybe if Seungmin were born again, he could have 0.1% of what Minho had in this lifetime.
When Chan let out his first yawn, Seungmin began to make his move. He sent a few messages and nudged Jeongin and Felix.
It was time.
"You guys are amazing and all, but we need to go." Seungmin stood up, followed by the younger boys.
"Already, Seung?" Jisung pouted.
"Yep. And you're coming with us." Felix was the one who spoke, pulling Jisung along by the hand.
"What?!" Chan stood up too.
"You really thought..." Seungmin flashed Chan the most sarcastic smile possible. "...that I'd let Jisung get married without a bachelor party?"
It was as if Bang had just been punched in the face.
"What did you do, Kim Seungmin?" He was already turning red, while Seungmin couldn't stop laughing.
"You'll never know!"
And with that, the three younger boys dragged Jisung toward the cabin they were sharing.
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Kim saw the exact moment Jisung's eyes filled with tears. It had been difficult getting all of this stuff to Australia without the grooms knowing.
"Is this my little blanket?" He picked up the red fabric, piled together with several others just like it and a bunch of pillows.
"Yep. Your mom helped us bring it." Felix flopped down in one corner while Jeongin headed to the bathroom.
The room was filled with blankets and pillows arranged into a comfortable, cozy nest, along with stuffed animals that Seungmin had taken the time to spray with a little—or rather, a lot—of Bang Chan's expensive cologne. On the wall, a projector displayed Netflix, with every Studio Ghibli movie available for them to watch.
"You always call Chan 'my alpha,' so I figured that, as an omega, you deserved the perfect nest." Seungmin explained this just as Jeongin walked back into the room with their new pajamas.
They had taken care of that too. Jisung loved wearing matching outfits: yellow for him, purple for Seungmin, pink for Felix, and, as anyone would have guessed, black for Jeongin.
A few minutes later, the four of them were sprawled across the pillows, wearing their matching pajamas with a glass of wine in hand.
"I still can't believe I'm getting married. This is surreal." Jisung's ears were already turning red from the alcohol.
"You deserve it, Jiji. This and so much more. Chan is perfect, and he loves you so much." Felix gently stroked his cheek.
"I'm so, so grateful you guys are here." He sniffled. "Seung and I have been planning our weddings ever since we found out what marriage was. Then Lilico joined us, and we realized we weren't crazy for wanting to get married... Not to mention Jeongin made us realize there's nothing wrong with liking other men."
"That's right." The youngest puffed out his chest. "Being your first gay kiss is, like, an achievement I'll carry with me for the rest of my life."
"You're such an idiot." Felix laughed after downing his entire glass of wine.
"And you love it!"
"I'm telling Changbin you gave up on trying to win him over and started flirting with me!" Felix poured half the bottle of wine into his own glass.
"Do that, and I'll tell Hyunjin you don't like that gold bandana of his!"
After that, the two launched into a series of baseless threats and several more bottles of wine.
"Thank you, Seung." Jisung rested his head on Seungmin's thigh.
"You don't have to thank me, Ji. I'm so happy for you." Seungmin ran his fingers through his hair.
"I want yours to be just as perfect as mine is going to be."
"I'm not getting married, Ji. We've talked about this." Seungmin sighed.
"You can't just give up like that. Chan is getting married at thirty, and Changbin's going to marry Jeongin even later if he keeps playing hard to get. We're twenty-five. You have time."
Jisung said it with such conviction that Seungmin might have believed him. But he wasn't naive anymore. Five relationships had been enough to teach him that his dream of getting married wasn't going to happen. Seungmin wasn't the kind of person other people wanted to keep around.
The first one left him the moment Seungmin opened the Pinterest folder where he'd saved all his wedding decoration ideas.
The second left when he found out Kim was studying music and had no intention of becoming a K-pop idol.
The third had actually proposed to him, only to leave him for a woman two weeks later.
The fourth was an illicit drug user who somehow managed to hide it for five months, until Seungmin noticed his laptop was missing and discovered it had been sold to buy cocaine.
And the last one stayed with Kim for a month before the older man realized that the boy, five years younger than him, wasn't looking for a stable relationship. He was looking for a mother who would wash his clothes, feed him, and give him money whenever he wanted to play with his friends at a gaming café.
After that, Seungmin understood why the boy's profile had made it so obvious that he preferred older men.
"Okay, Jiji." He finally answered. "Now let me send Chan that picture I found online of a guy giving another guy a lap dance."
"You're going to kill the old man, Seungmin." Jeongin already had their group chat open.
"That's the point."
Their response came in the form of a series of voice messages from Hyunjin, who was howling with laughter, Changbin telling Chan to calm down, and Minho trying to be the voice of reason.
But the last recording left Seungmin a little uneasy.
"I know it's a joke, sweetheart, but that doesn't make us any less annoyed."
Sweetheart.
Us.
Why would Minho be annoyed too?
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The four of them were having breakfast. Jisung and Felix were sitting at the counter of the small kitchen, while Jeongin and Seungmin stood across from them. Despite the hangover brought on by five bottles of wine, they were happy.
Felix had just shown them a compilation of people falling at weddings, making Kim and Yang burst into laughter. Meanwhile, Jisung swung his legs, imagining every possible way he could fall in front of the fifty guests, when the door was suddenly pounded on, making half the cabin shake.
"I swear to God, if you don't open this door in five seconds, I'm going to break the damn thing down!"
It was Chan, obviously. Jeongin hurried to open the door, still practically having a seizure from laughing so hard at the video of a groomsman's pants falling down in the middle of the ceremony.
The four older men walked in with sour expressions. They might have intimidated someone if they weren't so ridiculously funny.
"Why does everyone look so pissed off?" Thank God Felix said it with such an innocent, adorable expression that even Seungmin might have believed him if he claimed he had nothing to do with the previous night.
"Why, Lee Felix, I was laughing at Chan for thinking there was a dancer here..." Hyunjin shudders as he says his full name. "...until I realized that you were here."
"Baby, you know you're the only one who dances for me."
"My brain forgot that after three beers."
The two of them were kissing two seconds later.
"Seungmin, you're going to kill me." Chan was standing beside Jisung, holding his waist possessively.
"Come on, Chan. I'd never do that." He absolutely would, and judging by Chan's expression, he knew it.
"Anyway, thank goodness we're all alive and haven't had heart attacks." Minho walks over to the others and sets a basket of bread on the counter.
"Yeah, hyung, you need to be careful with that almost-forty-year-old heart of yours." Changbin shifts his gaze away from Jeongin, who was curled up in a corner, and teases Minho.
"Forty years old?!" Seungmin is startled by the sound of his own voice.
"Thirty-six, to be exact. But don't worry, Binnie, I take very good care of myself." Seungmin silently thanks Minho for not taking offense at the way he'd blurted that out.
Thirty-six years old. Lee Minho was thirty-six, yet had the face of someone ten years younger.
Seungmin's mind latches onto the words I take very good care of myself.
Did he work out?
God, the image of Lee Minho lifting weights, his arms flexing as his muscles came into view, his breathing heavy with exertion...
Thank God Jisung's phone started ringing right then.
"It's the wedding coordinator. I'll put it on speaker." He swipes across the screen and places the phone in the middle of the circle that has formed around him. "Hi, Sienna! Good morning! How are you?"
"Good morning, Mr. Han. I'm doing well, and how are you?" She waits for Jisung to confirm before continuing. "We have a problem... and I apologize in advance."
"Is it serious?" Jisung is already looking at Seungmin and Felix, his leg bouncing faster.
"A little, yes." She pauses before continuing. "The company that delivered the decorations and flowers just arrived, so I went through the checklist to make sure everything was there. It was... except one item is missing."
"Just tell me what happened before my husband throws up, Sienna." Bang Chan growls into the phone.
"The bouquet isn't here. The company said they weren't hired to take care of that part, and..." She sighs. "I checked our contract, and it's true. It's not included. We don't have a bouquet for the wedding, Mr. Bang and Mr. Han."
"Sienna..." Jisung swallows hard. "I'm sure I gave you a list of the flowers I wanted, with pictures, and two months ago, you sent me a picture of an arrangement that I said was perfect."
"Y-Yes, Mr. Han. I told the company that, but since it wasn't in the contract, they just assumed I'd sent you the wrong information. I'm sorry, I'm so sorry."
"But what the fuck?!" Bang grabs the phone from his fiancé's hands and starts speaking to the woman as privately as the space allows.
"Seung." Jisung swallows hard. "Seung, my bouquet."
The three younger boys are already wrapping their arms around Jisung, trying to calm him down as he begins to sob, his breathing becoming uneven.
Jisung's mother had gotten married with the most beautiful, voluminous bouquet they had ever seen. Her albums, which they called Operation: Wedding, were filled with pictures of gorgeous red flowers. It was safe to say that the flower arrangement was one of the most important parts of the wedding for the group.
When they were kids and pretended to get married, everything was a mess, but they would spend hours picking flowers all over the neighborhood until they decided they looked good enough for their pretend ceremony. So it made perfect sense that Jisung was freaking out.
Before Seungmin could even open his mouth to figure out a solution, a firm voice cut through the air, making the hairs on Kim's arms stand on end.
"Bang Chan, give me the car keys." Minho was already at the door when he asked.
"What are you going to do?" Chan tosses the keys into the older man's hand.
"I'm going to get Jisung a bouquet."
"But, hyung..." Jisung starts, but this time, Seungmin cuts him off.
"I'm going with you. I know exactly what Jiji likes." He turns to his friend. "The guests are arriving today. You need to welcome them and get them settled in their cabins. I'm going, Jiji. No arguments."
"If you don't make it back in time, Kim Seungmin, I'm not getting married." Jisung threatens.
"I'll be there when the priest says, 'If anyone has any objections, speak now or forever hold your peace.' Don't worry."
"You'd better be." Chan moves to stand beside Jisung again.
And so Seungmin runs after Minho, who is already heading straight for the Bang family's car. Apparently, the two of them have a four-hour drive to Sydney ahead of them.
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They'd been on the road for twenty minutes when Seungmin realized something was wrong. He'd spent the entire time trying to calm his nerves and regulate his breathing, which had ended up distracting him.
"I'm still wearing pajamas!" he yells as soon as he looks down and notices his purple plaid pants.
"Are you at least wearing slippers?" Minho glances at him and bursts out laughing.
"Of course I am, idiot!" He crosses his arms and looks away from Minho, his ears turning bright red.
Of course the damn man looked ridiculously hot in black dress pants, a black T-shirt, a gray plaid jacket, a dark chain, and even a fucking pair of sunglasses he'd found in the car's glove compartment.
"You can rest. We've still got a little while to go." Minho speaks gently and turns on the air conditioning to cool them down.
"I'm fine, just a little worried." He admits it quietly.
"I'm going to get those flowers, Seungmin. Don't worry." He says it in a way that makes the younger man's heart settle. "As soon as we get you into some decent clothes."
"No." Kim is quick to answer. "The flowers first."
Minho doesn't argue. He simply turns on the radio, playing a soft song. A few minutes later, Seungmin falls asleep.
When he wakes up, Minho is gently shaking his shoulders. The first thing Seungmin sees is the storefront of a flower shop. They both get out of the car and walk inside, and Seungmin immediately takes a deep breath, letting all the delicious scents fill his lungs.
A girl who looks younger than Seungmin greets them, and Kim stiffens. He doesn't speak English. Luckily, Minho takes over the conversation and explains the entire situation to Amelia, according to the name on her badge.
"Seungmin, sweetheart, I need you to tell me how you want the arrangement." Minho looks at him.
There it was again. That nonsensical nickname Minho insisted on calling him.
He ignores the slight irritation in his stomach. Hunger, probably. Then he explains exactly how he, Felix, and Jisung had imagined the bouquet, while Minho translates everything for Amelia.
"She said they're out of stock of acacia flowers because it's the end of spring. They can get them by tomorrow afternoon, but I'll figure out a way to have them delivered sooner." Minho takes Seungmin's hand, speaking as gently as possible.
"Do you think we'll have enough time?"
"I'm sure of it."
"I trust you, Min." Seungmin doesn't have much of a choice.
The two of them return to the car with just one promise: Jisung would have the exact bouquet he'd always dreamed of.
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Seungmin had no idea where they were going. Minho hadn't wanted to tell him. He'd simply turned the radio back on and asked Seungmin to make himself as comfortable as possible.
It was already past lunchtime, and they hadn't eaten anything on the road because they were in such a hurry to get to Sydney. As a result, Kim was starting to get a little irritable and needy.
"Hyung..." The nickname slipped out naturally. "I'm hungry." He pouted.
"We're almost there. Just wait a little longer, okay?"
Seungmin didn't answer. He simply huffed, turned toward the window, and watched the scenery pass by.
Minho parked in front of a hotel that Seungmin was certain he'd seen somewhere on Pinterest. He definitely couldn't afford to pay for a room there. The two of them got out of the car as a man approached and bowed so perfectly that the younger man was certain he'd never seen anything like it, not even in Korea.
Lee said something to the man and handed him the car keys, which Kim thought was pretty bold, before pulling Seungmin inside the hotel.
It was definitely a luxury hotel. Seungmin didn't even know how to describe the interior without losing a few dollars from his bank account just by looking at it.
"Welcome to the Park Hyatt, Seungmin-ah." Minho was smiling at the way Seungmin's eyes lit up.
"You have to be fucking kidding me. This can't be real."
They walked a little farther until Minho got the younger man, who had practically forgotten he even had legs, to sit down.
"I need to make a few calls. Can you do something for me?"
Seungmin simply nodded. His brain had practically fused to his skull, and his nerve cells were melting under the sheer amount of luxury surrounding him.
"Go to the front desk and tell them you want the keys to Lee Minho's private room. They know me by my personal name, not Lee Know, which I use at hotels. Got it, sweetheart?"
He could practically feel his brain matter leaking out through his nose, but he nodded anyway and headed toward the front desk.
When he approached the receptionist, he silently thanked every deity he could think of when he realized that Korean was one of the languages spoken by the staff. Then he put on his best I want something, and I'm going to get it smile, the one Jeongin had dubbed his signature look.
"Good afternoon! I'm the—"
"We don't have any rooms available."
He frowned, confused by the woman's harsh tone, wondering if there were really enough rich people in the world to fill a luxury hotel of this size.
"Actually, I—" He tried again, but the girl sighed and rolled her eyes.
"Can't you see this is a luxury hotel... for people who can afford a room? Not people like you?"
She pointed at Seungmin with a look of disdain, and then he understood.
His pajamas were all wrinkled, and he was pretty sure there was a wine stain on his thigh. His cheeks grew hot with embarrassment, and he looked around, wishing he could forget he'd ever stepped into a place where someone like him apparently didn't belong.
"Sorry," he murmured, lowering his head.
The girl let out a laugh, and he turned to leave, only to walk straight into someone.
Way too much humiliation for one day.
"What is going on here?" Seungmin lifted his head and felt Minho's arms wrap around his waist.
"This man was just leaving, sir. How may I help you?"
The receptionist's sudden change in tone startled Seungmin. It was as if she were an entirely different person. She was warm and friendly. Seungmin was certain she could convince anyone to stay at that hotel, no matter how much they had to pay, simply through her charisma.
"My name is Lee Minho. And why was my companion leaving?"
Seungmin imagined this was what a CEO looked like when something went wrong.
Kim watched the exact moment the woman went pale, her mouth opening and closing like a fish out of water.
"Mr. Lee?" She began shuffling through some papers, her hands trembling.
"That's me. I'm an Amethyst-tier client, just like my partner." Seungmin feared the girl was about to faint right there. "I want to speak to Choi Minki. Now."
"Sir, I'm sure I—"
"Now."
When the hotel manager, Choi Minki, arrived, he hugged Minho like they had been friends for years, and the two immediately fell into a warm conversation filled with laughter and catching up.
The older man introduced Seungmin and explained the reason for their unexpected visit. Minki simply smiled, handed Minho the access key, and made sure Kim received one as well.
The two of them were in the elevator when Seungmin glanced at Minho. His sleeves were rolled up, leaving his expensive watch on full display, and his hair was tousled from running his hands through it.
"Fuck, I'm sorry about that, Seungmin." Minho looked at the taller man as if he were somehow responsible for what had happened.
"It's okay. I'm not someone who belongs in a place like this. If it weren't for you, I wouldn't even have gotten close to this hotel. I'm the one who should be thanking you. Thank you." Seungmin offered him a small smile, trying to ease his worries.
"Don't say that. You don't have to belong somewhere to deserve respect. When I was younger, I'd show up here drunk and with my clothes torn. Minki would still take me in after laughing at me, and none of the staff ever dared say a word."
Seungmin wanted to point out that their situations were different, but he didn't want to make the older man feel any guiltier.
"For some reason, I knew you were a troublesome young adult."
"I think being friends with Chan automatically puts me in the 'troublemaker' category."
The two of them laughed.
Minho pulls him out of the elevator, and the two walk through a door marked 315.
And, well, Seungmin could see the Opera House from the bedroom window.
He jumped onto the bed without paying any attention to the rest of the room and pressed his nose against the glass.
"No fucking way! Is that the Harbour Bridge and the Opera House?! Like, right there?!"
Minho laughed at his pronunciation and corrected him gently.
"Yes, it is, sweetheart."
Seungmin wondered whether they'd stopped being formal with each other before or after he'd crushed Minho's feet during the waltz rehearsal the previous afternoon.
"It's beautiful." His nose was still pressed against the glass.
"The most beautiful thing of all."
And maybe Minho wasn't talking about the view.
A few minutes later, Seungmin was sitting on the bed, staring at his feet as if they were responsible for world hunger and the existence of wars.
Something had been bothering him ever since he'd taken a look around the room.
Minho had gone to get something, though the taller man hadn't quite understood what. He was still trying to process everything that had happened over the past hour.
"There's only one bed."
It was the first thing Seungmin said after the door closed and Minho walked back in.
"Yeah... I'll ask them to find another room for me. Don't worry. I just want to make sure you eat, change your clothes, and get some rest."
Minho seemed a little uncertain as he approached, holding a box in his left hand and pushing a food cart with the other.
"The bed is big."
Idiot. Seungmin was an idiot.
"I don't want to make you uncomfortable." Minho sounded hesitant.
"You won't."
Lee sighed and nodded.
"I asked Minki to bring you a change of clothes." He set the box down beside Seungmin.
"Is this... Is this Burberry? Fucking Burberry? Are you kidding me?" Seungmin yelled.
"Sorry, Seungmin. I'll ask him to bring something else." Minho reached for the box, startled, but the other man stopped him.
"Wait." Minho's eyes widened.
"I'm not complaining... Well, I am, but not because I don't like it." He sighed and looked the other man in the eyes. "This is expensive, Minho. Really expensive. I'm having to pretend it's normal to get into a car that's worth more than my annual salary, pretend it's normal when we walk in here and you act like this is your second home... And, fuck, this is the Park Hyatt."
He saw Minho swallow hard.
"I'm just a little overwhelmed. These clothes are something I never even imagined getting close to."
He picked up the box and pulled out a red cardigan with the brand's logo and a coffee-and-milk-colored pair of wide-leg trousers.
"It's... It's really beautiful, Minho. Thank you." He smiled at the older man.
"You don't have to thank me, Seungmin. I should've known that dragging you from place to place like this might make you uncomfortable." He sat down beside the younger man.
"It's okay. I can get used to it." Another smile.
"Um... I think this is a terrible time to mention that I asked our chef to prepare every dish on the menu because I didn't know what you liked to eat... right?" He scratched the back of his neck.
"Lee Minho!"
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After lunch, the older man explained that he needed to talk to a few people and returned a few hours later, well past dinnertime. Seungmin had never eaten a steak and potatoes that good.
Minho handed him a bag containing a blue Kuromi pajama set, which seemed to have been bought from a slightly more respectable store. He took a shower and waited, sitting stiffly on the left side of the bed, while the other man showered and changed into the cute cat pajamas Seungmin realized had been bought alongside his own.
When Lee stepped out of the bathroom, the pleasant scent of soap filled the room. Seungmin was tempted to snuggle up to Minho and fall asleep with his nose buried in the older man's neck, but he quickly realized that was probably not a good idea and simply turned his gaze toward the window.
"Do you have a preferred side of the bed?" Kim asked shyly.
"No, either side is fine with me." Minho plugged his phone in to charge and walked over to the bed.
"Okay, then I'll take this one." If the blond noticed Seungmin's nervousness, he didn't say anything.
"All right." Minho settled onto the right side of the bed, leaving about thirty centimeters of mattress between them. "I called Chan and asked him to let Jisung know everything is under control and that we'll make it back in time, even though we're spending the night here in Sydney."
"Thank you, Minho. I was careless for forgetting my phone." Seungmin hid his face beneath the blanket.
"You left in a hurry. It was kind of unavoidable." Minho pulled the covers over his shoulders and turned to face the younger man.
"Good night, hyung." Seungmin tried to avoid the older man's gaze.
"Good night, Seungmin, sweetheart."
Then Minho closed his eyes.
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It was almost two in the morning, and Seungmin hadn’t managed to sleep at all. He could hear Minho breathing beside him. The older man shifted slightly, moving a little closer to Kim without invading his personal space. But that wasn’t the problem.
Seungmin was overthinking. He had already made a list of a hundred things that could go wrong at Jisung’s wedding because of him, and half of them involved the two of them not making it back in time for the ceremony.
Sometimes, this happened. Seungmin would think too much and become so anxious that worry kept him from sleeping. It had happened when he was younger and waiting for his university entrance exam results, when he was preparing for the civil service exam, when he had to teach his first class, and when he started his PhD.
Despite being the most rational of the four friends, Seungmin was still a little anxious. His boys had always been there to pull him out of the thoughts his mind spiraled into during moments like these, but this time, he was alone.
He slowly got out of bed so he wouldn’t wake Minho and locked himself in the bathroom. He practiced the breathing techniques Jisung usually used and tried to focus only on the positive possibilities, just as Felix always told him to.
When he felt a little calmer, he decided to return to the bedroom. However, what he found was Minho sitting on the bed, his face illuminated by the light of his phone and his brow furrowed with concern.
"Did something happen? Are you okay?" He looked Seungmin up and down, as though the younger man might have somehow lost a leg on his way to the bathroom.
"Yes, hyung. Sorry for waking you." Seungmin approached the bed and sat on the edge.
"You didn’t wake me. I couldn’t sleep properly either." Minho scratched the back of his neck, looking anywhere but at the younger man’s face. "To be completely honest, I’m scared the flower shop might call me and I won’t wake up to answer. I keep thinking I might ruin my best friend’s wedding."
"It wouldn’t be your fault, hyung," Seungmin said calmly.
"Nor would it be yours." Under Minho’s gaze, Kim felt practically naked.
"You’re very observant, hyung." Seungmin shifted his gaze toward the window. Something about the city calmed him a little.
"I think it’s my age… and the fact that we’re both in the same situation." Minho stood up and stopped beside Seungmin, crossing his arms as he looked out at the city. "Our best friends are getting married, something went wrong, and the two of us took responsibility. If something goes wrong, there’s only one… no, two people who can be directly blamed."
"Very reassuring," he mocked.
"Realistic." Minho let out a small laugh. "But I’m going to do everything I can to make sure that doesn’t happen. If all else fails, we can run away together to a country on the other side of the world."
Minho said it as though it were nothing more than a joke, but his heart fluttered at the mere thought of the two of them traveling the world together.
"That would be nice, but I think Jisung would put a tracker around my neck if we got caught."
"Chan would, too."
The two of them fell silent for a while, simply taking in the lights shining from the capital in the early hours of a Saturday morning.
"Want to do something to tire ourselves out?" Minho asked.
"What?" Seungmin asked nervously. His brain immediately offered several possibilities that shouldn’t even have crossed his mind.
Minho simply took Seungmin’s left hand in his right and pulled him closer, bringing them face-to-face.
"What are you—"
Seungmin couldn’t finish the sentence. Minho placed a hand on his waist and began to spin them around the room, causing the younger man’s hand to move automatically to the older man’s shoulders. A low, melodic sound escaped Minho’s lips. Seungmin recognized the melody as the waltz Chan and Jisung had written especially for their wedding.
And then, the younger man understood.
They were rehearsing the wedding dance, exactly as Minho had said they would.
Minho whispered the song’s opening lines as he sang, followed by a verse about looking into someone’s eyes, facing unfamiliar feelings for the first time, and moving forward despite the trembling.
Seungmin knew the story behind that song. It was the same story Jisung had told him ever since the moment he met Chan.
The older man had been afraid of becoming a burden to Han because he was older and didn’t have the same energy as someone in their twenties. Seungmin had always thought that was ridiculous. After all, there were only five years between them.
Jisung often told him how Chan had gradually come to accept that Jisung could be his path to heaven.
And yet, somehow, the way the words left Minho’s lips and the way his eyes shone beneath the city’s faint light made Seungmin see a reflection of Chan’s feelings from five years earlier.
Suddenly, it felt as though an entire building had settled on his back. An avalanche of emotions weighed him down, aching all the way to his bones, and Seungmin felt exhausted.
Even so, he didn’t want the dancing to stop. He didn’t want to pull away from the older man.
So he simply moved closer and rested his head against Minho’s shoulder.
"You sing well, hyung." That was the last thing Seungmin remembered.
Perhaps, if he had stayed awake for a few more seconds, Minho might have pointed out that he hadn’t stepped on his feet even once.
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Seungmin woke up to the smell of bread and eggs. Minho was shaking him gently and calling his name. When he opened his eyes, the older man looked away and scratched the back of his neck.
"What—" He yawned. "What did you do to look so guilty?"
"I swear it wasn’t me. I asked Minki to bring clothes for us, and he brought these." Minho showed Seungmin a box.
"Of course. More expensive clothes." Minho looked at him with what Seungmin would describe as the eyes of a kitten that had fallen off a moving truck. "Fine, I’ll take them. We have to get to the flower shop quickly anyway."
Minho smiled and, to Seungmin’s horror, gave his still-covered butt a little pat before telling him to brush his teeth and eat breakfast so they could hit the road as soon as possible.
Luckily, the outfit was just a white T-shirt and a pair of jeans, but it still looked like it cost at least two months of the teaching salary he earned.
Meanwhile, Minho was wearing dress pants and formal shoes, along with a basic Givenchy shirt that nevertheless made it perfectly clear that the man could buy the world.
"You could buy the world, couldn’t you?" Minho nearly choked on the pudding he had just put in his mouth.
Seungmin sat at the table across from him and began eating a piece of omelet decorated with a thin layer of gold. Rich people.
"If you asked me to, I could buy it for you." He probably shouldn’t have, but the hairs on Seungmin’s body stood on end from head to toe.
"That would be excessive." He pretended to think about it. "I think if you bought me just a tropical island where I could spend my summer vacation, that would be enough."
"What would I get in return?" Something unfamiliar gleamed in Minho’s eyes.
"Whatever you want." He stuffed his mouth with food.
"Be careful what you say, Seungmin."
That shiver again.
Seungmin had been joking. Minho knew that… right?
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The bouquet was simply perfect. They had arranged the roses, acacias, and eucalyptus flowers in such a beautiful and harmonious way that Kim’s eyes filled with tears the moment he saw it.
Minho had kept his promise and arranged for a shipment of winter acacias to arrive at the place where they had ordered the arrangement during the early hours of the morning. The flower shop had then spent the remaining hours trying to arrange them in a way that looked good enough for—this was the part that confused Seungmin a little—his wedding.
Kim didn’t understand English perfectly, but he understood enough to know that the congratulations being directed at them were about a supposed wedding between the two of them.
In the car, with the flowers safely secured and a few extras in reserve, Minho drove while humming along to the radio as though he had just won the lottery.
"You told them we’re getting married," Seungmin blurted out.
"How do you know?" Minho’s amused tone irritated the younger man.
"I’m terrible with other languages, but I know what ‘Wishing you a lifetime of love and happiness together’ means. Chan heard that all month." He crossed his arms and turned toward the older man. "Are you laughing?"
"You’re turning red. It’s cute."
Seungmin huffed and smacked him on the shoulder.
"Yesterday, I called a friend who knows a plant supplier, but the supplier wasn’t cooperating until my friend shouted in his face that ‘Lee Know from SDD Entertainment is getting married today.’ The acacias were here two hours later."
"You’re insane! What if it makes the news that you’re getting married?" Seungmin asked indignantly.
"Then I’ll need to find a groom urgently," he said, amused.
"I have a few friends who would love to marry you."
"Seungmin… are you messing with me?" Minho’s eyes widened.
"Why would I do that?"
The unpleasant feeling that settled in Seungmin’s chest when he imagined a woman walking toward Minho at an altar was concerning.
"I’m gay with a capital G. I thought you knew."
"Well, you look the part, but I didn’t want to assume anything." He shrugged.
"And then you try to set me up with a friend? God, what am I supposed to do with you?" Minho ran a hand over his face.
"Well, you could speed up this rich man’s car and get us there a few hours early so I can get ready." Seungmin decided to change the subject.
"You asked for it."
They arrived half an hour earlier than expected.
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As soon as Seungmin stepped out of the car, he was dragged away by a desperate, distraught Jeongin. Jisung had been crying ever since he woke up, and no one had been able to make him stop. Chan’s mother had also insisted that the couple couldn’t see each other until the ceremony began.
When he reached the room, Kim hugged Jisung, Jeongin hugged Seungmin, and Felix hugged Han. They stayed tangled in that human bubble until the tallest of them decided it was time to get things started. Everything would begin in about four hours.
And so, the groom-and-groomsmen preparations began.
A team took care of them with massages, hair treatments, manicures, and pedicures. They were given light but filling meals, their makeup was done to accentuate every feature, and, finally, they were dressed in their suits.
The groomsmen wore pastel yellow suits with slightly darker ties. Each suit had something that highlighted a particular feature of its wearer, something Jisung had insisted on. Jeongin’s blazer was longer, making his shoulders look broader. Felix, of course, had traded his dress shoes for Converse sneakers. Seungmin simply pushed up the sleeves of his blazer, leaving his arms exposed. His long legs were already enough to leave anyone speechless.
Jisung, meanwhile, wore a more mustard-toned shade of yellow that made him look sexy. He had put on a black corset so tight that the others were convinced Chan could make his fingers meet if he wrapped his arms around him.
Chan, on the other hand, wore an entirely black suit, with only a tie matching his husband’s outfit and a small yellow rose tucked into his jacket pocket. Changbin decided to wear just his dress shirt, without a blazer, along with black suspenders. Hyunjin chose to wear the full suit, but with a black tie and an excessive number of accessories, including rings and bracelets in a dark gunmetal shade.
And finally, Minho wore black tailored trousers and a satin shirt that made his movements look fluid, as though he were floating rather than walking. Later, Seungmin would be certain he had chosen it specifically to make his nipples stand out and send the younger man into a coma.
The groomsmen stood behind a folding screen positioned so that the ceremony area couldn’t be seen. Jisung was the only one there with them. Each of them held hands with their partner; that was how they had chosen to walk down the aisle.
Minho and Seungmin would go first, followed by Felix and Hyunjin, then Jeongin and Changbin, and finally Jisung.
Everyone was nervous.
"I’m going to throw up," Jisung said, holding his stomach.
"Don’t worry. After Chan’s mother saw him, she put a bucket under the chair she’s going to sit in. Just in case," Minho teased.
"Oh my God, he’s worse than I am." Some color returned to Jisung’s face.
"Of course he is. He’s Chan. He pretends to be a macho alpha, but he’s just a helpless little omega," Changbin said.
"Look who’s talking. The guy who doesn’t eat the crust of his pizza." Hyunjin smacked his arms.
"Hey! It’s a strategy to eat more of the part with the filling."
The wedding coordinator arrived in the middle of the argument, and Seungmin told them to quiet down. She went over the ceremony proceedings and asked whether Jisung was ready. Once everyone was in position, she gave the signal for the music to begin.
"Everything’s going to be fine." Seungmin felt a squeeze of his hand and smiled at Minho.
"It will be." He knew that if anything went wrong, the older man would find a way to fix it.
Minho held his hand through every step, smiling as he went. As though being there was the best moment of his life. They didn’t stumble, miss a beat, or make a single mistake.
It was beautiful.
They reached Chan and bowed. Minho pressed a kiss to Kim’s cheek before moving to his place.
Everything was so beautiful that it was difficult for them to hold back their tears when Chan came into view. The man was clearly nervous, his hands trembling, but his smile was the widest anyone there had ever seen.
When Jeongin took his place beside Felix, a different song began to play. Jisung had said it was called "Close."
Watching his best friend walk among all those people, alone but with his chest held high, a smile on his face and tears in his eyes, made a weight lift from Seungmin’s shoulders. It was as though he had been waiting for that moment for all twenty-five years of his life.
It was perfect.
He didn’t know when he had started crying, but Felix rested his head on his shoulder and let out a few soft sniffles. The grooms—husbands—slipped into their own little world the moment their eyes met for the first time.
Everything went smoothly. The priest conducted the ceremony in a lighthearted manner, clearly taking care with the fact that they were two men, and everyone was grateful for it. When it was time for the vows, no one managed to hold back. Most of them began to cry. Those two were good with words, and it was obvious they were going to drown everyone in tears.
When everything was over and the two of them kissed, a round of applause filled the room. Everyone stood up and began whistling at the newlyweds, while Jisung did a little happy dance and Chan doubled over laughing at his husband.
They walked toward the reception area beneath a shower of yellow rose petals, Jisung clutching his bouquet as though he needed it to survive. He had cried earlier when he saw it, touching every petal tenderly and thanking Seungmin so many times that the taller man had to tell him to shut up.
They cried together afterward.
The dancing began with Jisung and Chan. They opened the dance floor during the first verse of "Close." Soon after, the groomsmen joined them, gathering together for the waltz. Since it was already late afternoon, paper lanterns had been hung throughout the venue, giving everything a romantic atmosphere, just as Han had wanted.
Minho’s hand was on his waist again, while his other hand held Seungmin’s up in the air. His eyes were focused on every detail of Seungmin’s face.
"You’re beautiful," the older man said.
"T-Thank you." Kim’s cheeks turned red.
The song came to an end, and a more upbeat one began playing, but Minho held Seungmin a little tighter.
"Don’t go."
"The waltz is over." He moved back toward Minho.
"But I want to dance with you a little longer." Lee’s hand, which had been resting on his waist, moved up to gently caress his face.
"Hyung, they’re playing funk, and we’re still in a waltz position." Seungmin let out a laugh.
"I don’t care." He traced Seungmin’s lips with his thumb. "I want to kiss you, Seungmin. I have for a long time."
"I… I’m eleven years younger than you, hyung." Seungmin hesitated.
"Is that a problem for you?" His finger tugged gently at Seungmin’s lower lip, making him sigh. "I’ve been thinking about this for a while. It’s not a problem for me anymore."
"No, hyung. Your age isn’t a problem… but people. People can be cruel." He squeezed Minho’s shoulder slightly.
"We’re at a gay wedding." He tried to make it clear that the people there could be trusted. "But I understand. I never want to make you uncomfortable." He slowly let go of Seungmin, as though putting that distance between them was physically painful.
"You don’t. I just…" He lowered his gaze.
"I know."
Seungmin believed him, even though he didn’t understand what, exactly, the older man knew.
"If you ever feel like you want to be with me, or that you can be with me, come to me, Minnie. I’ll wait."
Seungmin looked at Minho. The older man wore a small smile, as though he already knew he was going to be rejected. As though he had been rehearsing those words for years.
"What do you mean when you say you’ve been thinking about this for a while?"
Besides, Minho spoke as though he had known Seungmin for years, even though they had said their first "hello" less than seventy-two hours ago.
"Kim Seungmin. Likes dogs and dipping his fries into milkshakes. Works as a music teacher. Best friend of Han Jisung, Lee Felix, and Yang Jeongin. Twenty-five years old, and wants to adopt a puppy because he thinks they’re cute." Minho emphasized every detail.
"How do you know all that?" Seungmin furrowed his brow.
"I’m going to sound a little unhinged, I’d say, but that’s not my intention." He looked away, his cheeks turning red. "Five years ago, Chan showed me Jisung, and, by extension, you. At first, I thought you were handsome, and that was it. But then Jisung posted one of your covers on Instagram, and after that, all I remember is always looking for your voice whenever I had a tiring day or fought with my dad. Half the views you have on YouTube are probably mine."
He let out a small laugh and looked at Seungmin.
Seungmin was stunned, his eyes wide and his mouth hanging open.
Minho had known him for five years.
"Fuck, Seungmin, please don’t think I invaded your privacy. Please. I swear I never did. The things I know about you are either because I saw them on Jisung’s Instagram or because Chan mentioned them. My brain just decided to create a folder for all those details. I never did anything beyond that. I think the only time I actually searched for you was to find your covers on YouTube."
Seungmin moved a little closer.
"I’m sorry. Please."
"Why did you never come after me?" Seungmin was so close that he could feel Minho’s breath.
"Fear."
He looked so small in front of the taller man, his eyes wide and frightened.
"Then why now?" Seungmin asked in a whisper.
"I met the Seungmin who exists outside of Instagram. The guy who dropped everything to go after something for his best friend. The guy who scolded a CEO for spending money on expensive clothes, who ate every last grain of food so nothing would go to waste. The guy who was kind to someone who was treating him with contempt."
Minho said it as though those things were accomplishments worthy of an award. To Seungmin, that was simply what it meant to be human.
"Is this Seungmin enough? I’m not the person you knew before, hyung." Seungmin blinked, apprehensive.
"You’ll always be enough, Minnie. I’m the one who was awful and invaded your priva—"
Seungmin kissed him.
His hands pulled the older man closer by the waist, pressing their lips together. Minho tasted like marshmallows and strawberries.
"If you’re unhinged for feeling that way, then what does that make me for wanting to kiss you the moment you appeared beside Chan yesterday?" His breathing was slightly uneven.
"Perfect for me?" Minho replied.
And yes, they were perfect for each other.
Their lips met again. Minho sighed when he felt the younger man’s tongue brush against his lips, opening his mouth and allowing Seungmin to explore as he pleased.
They pulled apart when they heard whistles around them. Jisung was practically hanging off Chan as he pointed at the two of them.
"I told you they’d hit it off! You owe me money, Channie."
Seungmin turned toward his friend, looking indignant.
"But you said they’d get together yesterday. I said it would happen later," Chan argued.
The four of them gathered together and launched into an argument about the aforementioned bet, until they discovered that the others had been involved in it, too.
Jisung admitted that he had talked about Seungmin to Minho whenever he got the chance, hoping to pique the older man’s interest. He then explained that the same approach wouldn’t have worked on Kim.
By the end of it, everyone was shouting in the middle of the wedding, while the guests simply laughed, already familiar with what those friends were like.
Not once did Minho leave Seungmin’s side. They both knew they had a lot to talk about and clear up. Minho still had plenty of apologies to make, and Seungmin wanted to understand whether the time they had spent together had been enough to make the older man want to stay even more.
And, in the end, Felix caught the bouquet Jisung threw—only to accidentally rip off one of Chan’s aunts’ hair extensions in the process.