Work Text:
[Prologue]
"All right, now we just plug this in, and put this over here... All set! Our little maiden is good to go!" Wonwoo smirked, straightening himself up from in front of the television screen and handing Junhui the game controller, "Have fun." Smugness was written all over his face as the latter snatched the controller out of his hand grudgingly.
"I hate everything."
"Don't worry, Junhui, I'm sure you can do it." Soonyoung smiled, putting a hand on Junhui's shoulder. But the older could tell that he was shaking from having to hold in his laughter.
"Go away." Junhui grumbled grumpily, shrugging Soonyoung's hand off.
Jihoon had remained silent through the whole ordeal, but Junhui could just imagine an equally smug look on the shortest boy's face as he leaned against the doorway, waiting for Wonwoo and Soonyoung to finish their teasing so he could deliver the final blow. Well, Junhui wasn't going to let that happen. Before they could damage his poor soul any further, Junhui shoved the three of them out of the door.
"Enjoy the game!"
"Take your time with it!"
Door slam.
Rolling his eyes, Junhui slid down onto the floor and scooted over to the television, leaning his back against the side of Soonyoung's bed. Since he was already stuck with this, might as well get comfortable, right? But as soon as he pressed play, Junhui went through another episode of regretting his life choices.
It all started when Jeonghan's family sent him a box full of supplies for the whole dorm, but apparently one of his sister's otome games was mixed in. Jeonghan called back to notify her, but she said they could just throw it away.
Then, Soonyoung, being Soonyoung, decided that since it was going to be thrown away anyway, might as well have some fun with it first. He somehow talked Wonwoo, Jihoon, and Junhui into a bet, the loser had to do one play-through of the game.
As for what the nature of the bet was... It wasn't important. Or at least that was what Junhui was telling himself as he thrust his head back in frustration once the overly-sparkly-exaggeratedly-handsome-two-dimensional characters came to view on the title screen. He pressed the forward button and almost yawned at the cheesy intro lines.
"He" understands you the most
"He" is always there for you
...
And "he" watches from afar
Junhui rolled his eyes at the screen, pressing his thumb down repeatedly in hopes that it would make the intro go by faster.
Great. Let the cheesy game-play begin.
The game allowed very thorough customization. Aside from the player's name, even the character names could be changed. There were two main love interests, and one "friend" that was supposed to help the player through various things, including breaking the fourth wall.
Already feeling like dying, Junhui skimmed through each character description skeptically.
The seemingly cold prince character, but is actually very warm once you get to know him. Actually has a very playful side?! The type who likes to tease the one they like.
Your childhood friend, is described as the very embodiment of the sun... But can suddenly become serious as well? "I'm always serious when it comes to you..."
Lastly, please give me a name as well! I guess you can call me a friend, an ally, and I will be in charge of guiding you through this game!
Thinking that it was somehow revenge, Junhui named the characters accordingly - Wonwoo, Hoshi, Woozi. Admittedly, the last one seemed to feel the most out of place, but don't the fans always call Woozi a fairy or something? Seems fairly legit since the helper character had elf-ears for whatever reason. Junhui really wasn't paying attention to the plot at all.
Just as he expected, the game was boring as fuck, and Junhui's eyeballs almost felt sore from all the eye-rolling. Finally, he gave up completely on seriously going through the damn thing and began to press the forward button as fast as possible, not even bothering to read over the choices that pop up now and then.
He felt his thumb going numb, man, how long was this stupid game?!
His eyelids felt heavy... Say, how long had he been stuck with this anyway?
Junhui yawned. Well, whatever...
ZzzzZzzzZzzz
Junhui wasn't sure how long he had slept, but he eventually felt someone nudging his shoulder, a very gentle and smooth deep voice calling him, urging him to get up or he'd miss dinner.
At the mention of food, Junhui shot up immediately, almost slamming straight into Wonwoo's jaw. He heard laughter that was quickly cut off and looked past Wonwoo to see Soonyoung holding his stomach while a very much less than amused Jihoon leaned against the doorway, looking as though he had nothing to do with why Soonyoung seemed to be groaning in pain.
"You ready to go?" Jihoon asked, although the question didn't seem to be directed at anyone in particular, Wonwoo and Soonyoung both turned to look at Junhui.
"Uh, yeah, sure." Junhui replied dumbly, allowing Wonwoo to lead him by the arm.
But when they got to the doorway, Soonyoung snatched up his other arm and tugged on it gently, "Junhui is sitting next to me today!"
"Stop it, the kid's still tired." Wonwoo's grip on Junhui didn't soften, and instead, tightened.
Kid? I'm older than you- was what Junhui was going to retort, but he was suddenly distracted by what appeared to be dialogue boxes popping up from below his vision.
A. "Yeah, knock it off."
B. [sit next to Hoshi]
Junhui stood rooted to the spot, gaping at the option boxes. Noticing Soonyoung and Wonwoo giving him weird looks, Junhui quickly shook his head, refocusing his gaze on the same spot. The boxes were gone. Phew. That would have been disastrous. That was definitely the last time he was ever touching an otome game.
[Wonwoo Route: Of Bites and Scratches]
After dinner, Junhui couldn't help collapsing onto the table, feeling completely lethargic. That game was honestly a complete waste of his life and precious break time. He closed his eyes and rubbed his cheek against the cold surface. It felt oddly soothing. He could hear the clattering of plates and bowls being taken off the table and figured that the members on duty were probably clearing the scene.
Suddenly, he felt a slight pain on the back of his neck and shot up from his seat, pressing a hand against the shallow bite mark that had formed from the ambush. "Wonwoo, attacking someone in their sleep is low!" Junhui whined, but the latter simply escaped into the kitchen.
This guy... Junhui thought to himself, positioning himself around the kitchen's corner so that he could gift Wonwoo with painful revenge.
"You're too easy to read."
Junhui quickly whipped his entire body around. When did the bastard even leave the kitchen?!
"All right, calm down." Wonwoo smiled, patting Junhui on the head as though he were smoothing down the fur of a bristling cat. Junhui growled and without thinking, bit down on Wonwoo's hand. At the taste of iron entering his mouth, Junhui's eyes widened and he quickly backed away to examine Wonwoo's injury.
"Oh my god, I'm so sorry- Let me get the first-aid kit... Mingyu! Where is the first-" Junhui's voice was muffled as Wonwoo covered a hand over his mouth.
There was something in Wonwoo's eyes. Something so deep that Junhui couldn't read, or rather, wouldn't dare to, but he somehow found himself being drawn in.
"Hush, you're really sorry, right?" Wonwoo had lowered his voice so that the others hanging out in the living room wouldn't hear their conversation. His voice had a nasal touch to it, contrary to its usual smooth texture, and Junhui could feel his breath hitch. Slowly, the latter nodded, then immediately regretted it when a dark smile graced Wonwoo's handsome features. "Lick it."
Junhui felt the hand on his mouth slide off. Tenderly, he held Wonwoo's injured hand in his, licking at the reddened bite mark obediently. Suddenly, Wonwoo slid his thumb into Junhui's mouth, playing with the latter's tongue as the older let out a quiet whimper. The sound merely encouraged Wonwoo, and Junhui soon found Wonwoo's thumb being replaced by the younger's tongue.
And that was when Junhui chose to black out.
Special POV Story
Wonwoo had spent almost the entire afternoon playing a new game. While he didn't lock the room, he could tell that his roommate was less than pleased with his activities. Namely, Junhui. Of course, the latter wouldn't admit it, being his usual cat-like self.
The trick to dealing with Junhui, was to wait for him to come over by himself. The downside, of course, was that Junhui was very easily distracted, and after getting enough attention from you, he'd leave like nothing happened.
As Wonwoo continued his game-play, he could feel a vengeful gaze burning into the back of his head. But when he turned, Junhui had his back to him, seemingly busy with catching up with one of his favorite book series. As soon as he returned to his game, the gaze would come back. Wonwoo chuckled to himself. He was honestly too easy to read sometimes.
"Junhui, do you want to play, too?" Wonwoo called nonchalantly.
"No. You know I'm bad at video games." Junhui replied, not even bothering to hide the grudging tone in his voice.
This only made Wonwoo's smirk widen, "Come on, I'll teach you."
"No."
Pretending to look exasperated, Wonwoo reached over the bed and pulled Junhui into his lap, ignoring the protests, cursing, and threats flying out of the latter's dishonest lips.
"Let me go, I'm almost done with my book!" Junhui whined, using both hands to push against Wonwoo's chest.
"You've been on the same page for hours."
Wonwoo watched with amusement as Junhui's movements stopped abruptly, and the tips of his ears began to glow a bright red. Taking this to his advantage, Wonwoo tightened his arms around his roommate's waist, giving a light nibble on Junhui's neck as he rested his chin against the latter's shoulder.
"...I just wanted you to look at me instead of that game." Junhui grumbled, still very much bitter.
"I know, I know." Wonwoo soothed, "I'll get you spicy food later-"
"Spicy food?" Junhui's eyes immediately brightened, looking up at Wonwoo excitedly, "I WANT I WANT I WANT!"
Wonwoo chuckled, planting a soft peck on Junhui's nose. He owned a very dishonest cat. Well, unless it came to food.
Love End
Wonwoo had a queer habit. He was a biter. In particular, he liked to bite on the shoulder of the one standing in front of him. Mingyu had once questioned why, in which he had replied, "Just because."
"Ow! Geez, tone it down!" Junhui had complained one day during a fansign, rubbing at the back of his neck where Wonwoo had "marked" him. The younger didn't reply as the older turned back to the cameras, smiling as though nothing had happened.
Didn't you notice? Over the years, at some point, some time, instead of the shoulder, Wonwoo had taken a liking to the neck.
And didn't you notice? Over the years, at some point, some time, his target had narrowed down to just one.
[Hoshi Route: Behind the Headband]
"Junhui~ it's time to wake up~" Soonyoung cooed, poking at his friend's cheek.
Junhui blinked his eyes open, then blinked a couple more times at the puddle of drool that had accumulated between his cheek and the table's surface. He quickly pushed himself up just as the shutters went off on Soonyoung's phone.
"Got it!" Soonyoung grinned triumphantly, "Another picture added to my collection of bizarre photos!"
"You, uh, what just..." Junhui shook his head, "Where's Wonwoo?"
He thought he saw the grin on Soonyoung's face slip slightly, "He's helping Mingyu wash the dishes."
"Oh, I see." Junhui replied hesitantly, wondering if all 'that' was just a dream. Why did he have such a weird dream to begin with? He looked down at his hands and fumbled with the tablecloth, suddenly very self-conscious as a gaze burned into him from the side. But when he turned to look at Soonyoung, the latter's expression had returned to that of a harmless hamster's.
"Forget about him, let's go play on our own!" Soonyoung smiled, grabbing Junhui by the elbow and running off to the practice room.
"Uh, Soonyoung?" What can we possibly play in the practice room...?
Allowing himself to be dragged by the human energy ball, Junhui almost crashed face-first into a mirror. Soonyoung had abruptly let go of his arm, and was now fumbling with something behind the counter. Blinking, Junhui turned to look at the boy, waiting for him to explain the situation. When the younger dancer re-emerged from behind the counter, he was holding a headband.
"Remember this? I gave it to you while we were promoting Very Nice." Soonyoung said, grinning from ear-to-ear as usual, the headband dangling loosely in his hand.
"Uhm, yeah..." Junhui instinctively backed away as Soonyoung moved towards him, twirling the headband around his finger. Somehow, the smile on Soonyoung's face didn't seem... normal.
"So how did it end up behind there?" Soonyoung questioned with his usual cheerful tone, but Junhui could almost hear the menace in his voice. "Answer me, Junhui."
"I-"
Before he could get a full sentence out, he found himself getting shoved into the mirror behind him, knocking the wind out of him. He felt himself sliding down the cold surface, with Soonyoung squatting down in front of him, his face just inches from his own, "I was your first friend. I took care of you when no one else would. So why are you leaving me for Wonwoo?"
"What do you mean by- Soonyoung, what are you doing?!" Junhui's voice rose into panic as Soonyoung slid the headband over the older dancer's eyes, "Stop it, this isn't like y-" his words were muffled as Soonyoung forcefully delivered a kiss to his lips.
"The real reason why I gave you the headband was for this, you know. So that you wouldn't look at anyone else..."
"I can't see anything like this..." Junhui tried not to let his voice tremble, but he evidently didn't try hard enough, and he let out a yelp when he felt Soonyoung's hand crawling up his bare back, placing caressing touches over his skin.
"I know." Soonyoung's voice had dropped to a whisper, then there was silence. After what seemed like ages to Junhui, he finally saw light again as Soonyoung walked away, tossing the headband into the trashbin, "You won't look at me anyway."
Ever since he first woke up, Junhui had gone through confusion, to shock, to uneasiness, to fear, and now all he was feeling, was anger. "Kwon Soonyoung, don't you dare turn your back on me!"
Soonyoung turned, not backing away from Junhui's enraged gaze. A resigned look on his face, as though he were ready to take on all of Junhui's hatred towards him after basically revealing himself as a psycho.
"I don't understand why you think Wonwoo and I have some special relationship or whatever, but you're the one I've always considered myself to be the closest to. It might not be the same way as how you feel for me, but... I'm willing to try. If it's for you, I-"
"Junhui." Soonyoung smiled, pulling Junhui into a tight hug, "It's okay."
The older boy blinked, swallowing the rest of his rant to the pit of his stomach. Slowly, he returned the hug, holding the younger boy in an even tighter hold. How long has it been since they last did this?
"...I missed you..."
"Yeah... I missed you, too."
Special POV Story
Soonyoung was annoyed. Unbelievably annoyed. Thanks to leader meetings, he was always on a different meal schedule than the others, and Junhui always ends up eating lunch with Wonwoo. Honestly, what did that guy have that he didn't? Time.
The performance unit leader gathered up his things, angrily shoving paperwork into a pile, ignoring the bent edges, then stomping out the door. He proceeded to crash straight into a very familiar someone's chest.
"Junhui? What are you doing here?" Light immediately sparked back into Soonyoung's eyes as he looked up at Junhui with delight, "I thought you went to eat with Wonwoo."
"I did, but I brought your share." Junhui smiled, handing Soonyoung his lunch.
Soonyoung looked down at the food, then back up at Junhui, who was still smiling innocently at him. "But you still went with Wonwoo." He couldn't help laughing to himself when Junhui's expression fell slightly.
"Soonyoung, I told you-"
"I'm just joking with you~ let's go eat in the practice room!" With that, he grabbed Junhui's wrist and pulled him down to their usual meal spot.
It wasn't that Soonyoung was particularly attached to the area himself, but it was the first place he and Junhui worked together as official members of SEVENTEEN. So, yeah, in a way, maybe he felt attached to it. Just maybe.
Junhui had leaned forward to wipe away sauce from his mouth after Soonyoung had finished the entire box. The latter grinned, tilting his head to the side at how close Junhui's face was to his own. So defenseless.
"Say, Junhui." Soonyoung spoke, closing their proximity even more, "Have you ever tried mirror play?"
Love End
"Soonyoung."
It was the first name Junhui learned to call among the members. Soonyoung somehow felt proud of it. So far, he was the only member whom Junhui could identify by name... in fact, he could pronounce Soonyoung's name better than his own in Korean.
"Soonyoung."
He wondered why, he had never felt particularly fond of his name before...
"Soonyoung."
But it sounded oddly sweet coming from his mouth.
Love Start
"Junhui!"
"Soonyoung!"
The Chinese boy had immediately chirped at the sound of his bunk mate calling for him. Jihoon watched as Junhui's gaze swept over to him, a strange look had clouded over the latter's eyes. He was probably trying to remember his name, Jihoon had thought. He didn't think much of it. Surely, to Junhui, he was always "the one who's always next to Soonyoung" before he eventually got to learn everyone's names. Even then, Junhui remained particularly attached to Soonyoung.
That was fine. Soonyoung was always the one to approach him anyway. It wasn't necessary for Jihoon to be the one. Besides, it wasn't like him to.
Junhui was feeling anxious about something, he's been talking to Wonwoo about it for some time. Wasn't it his examination day? Ah. So that was why. When Junhui felt nervous, he'd always carry around some giant bunny. It was childish, and didn't match his mature appearance at all, but it calmed him down. Did he lose it?
Jihoon disappeared into the next room for a while, snatched the bunny from some of the younger trainees and handed it to Junhui.
"Thanks, Soonyoung!"
Jihoon blinked. Well, he's been told that he looked like Soonyoung, and Junhui was a scatterbrain in general. So he simply shrugged and walked away. Might as well. Junhui idolized Soonyoung. Besides, it wasn't like something Jihoon would do.
But Junhui's bright smile remained imprinted in the back of Jihoon's mind.
Special POV Story
"Jihoon, did you hear that? We won! Oh..."
You're such an idiot.
"Why are you crying?"
Even through his blurred vision, Jihoon could see Junhui's worried face as he wiped away his tears tenderly, in a way that wouldn't seem too imposing but at the same time, very warm. Jihoon tried to duck away, but Junhui was stubborn about it.
"Geez..." He could almost hear the smile in Junhui's voice.
"Hoshi, you have to cry prettily!"
Jihoon could feel the warmth immediately leaving him at the mention of Soonyoung crying. Almost desperately, Jihoon reached forward, trying to get just a snag on the taller boy's clothes.
Don't go to him, don't go to him, don't go to him-
But even through his blurred vision, he could see Junhui and Soonyoung's tight embrace. At that moment, he wished he were blind. Since when did he feel so competitive? It wasn't like him.
[Secret Route: It's Not Like Me]
Junhui found himself waking up, again, at the table. Everyone else seemed to have left, and someone had draped a blanket over his shoulder. Blinking, Junhui carefully folded it up and headed to the living room. The three oldest members were hanging around, Jeonghan and Jisoo appeared to be giving Seungcheol some sort of confidence boost regarding being the general leader.
Jisoo was the first to notice Junhui's presence, "Hey, what's up? You've been out for a while."
"Oh, um..." Junhui looked around at the three, "I was just wondering... Do you know whose blanket this is?"
Jisoo looked back at the other two, who both shook their heads, "We all left at around the same time, so we're not sure who could have done it. You should go ask the other kids."
"Okay..." Junhui exited the room, rubbing his temple tiredly, thinking of all the possible options. The most possible option seemed to be Wonwoo, who had left last because of his dish duty. He didn't know why he felt so fixated on finding the owner, but something told him he had to.
Wonwoo was playing a video game in their room, Soonyoung was lying upside-down on the bed, watching Wonwoo play.
"Junhui!" Soonyoung shot up immediately, "Do you want to play?"
"Um, no thanks." For some reason, that sentence brought back shivering memories. He just couldn't quite put a picture on any of them, "Does this blanket belong to either of you by any chance?" Junhui asked, indicating towards the folded fabric in his arms.
Soonyoung shook his head while Wonwoo was too immersed in his game-play. Taking a glance at his bed, Junhui figured that it was probably not Wonwoo's. Better luck elsewhere then...
As he exited from the room, he accidentally walked into Jihoon, who looked slightly alarmed, but at the sight of Junhui the look quickly softened, replaced by his usual calm expression, "Look who decided to wake up." And of course that sharp tongue of his never rests.
Junhui rolled his eyes, "You have no idea how tiring playing that dumb game is, okay?"
"Sure, sure." Jihoon smirked, "You played all of it anyway."
"Only because of the bet!" Junhui retorted, walking past Jihoon.
"Junhui, wait." Jihoon called with a tone that Junhui had never quite heard from the younger before. It almost felt like... regret? Hesitation? Jihoon paused, "Mingyu made hot tea for you, go drink it. We- I mean, he was worried that you may have caught a cold." Before Junhui could react, the latter had turned and disappeared down the hallway.
"...Thanks!" Junhui called towards the vocalist's direction. He heard the footsteps pause, and then continue further away.
But whatever the case, Junhui needed to get rid of the blanket first. He decided to check each room, coming out fruitlessly for the first two before entering the last one. Namely, Jihoon's room.
"Jihoon-"
"Out!"
Junhui quickly ducked as a pillow was thrown at the door.
"Oh, sorry, I thought it was Soonyoung." Jihoon said, lying in a very abnormal position on his bed. The only thing Junhui could think of to describe Jihoon's position... was that he looked like a flying squirrel, with both hands clinging to one corner of the bed, his legs spread to cover the mattress with his entire body.
"...Jihoon, what are you doing?"
"Yoga."
Junhui blinked. He wondered if hanging out with Soonyoung for so long had finally gotten to him. Something was definitely odd. He surveyed the room, then back at Jihoon. Then it finally hit him. Jihoon was trying to hide the fact that he doesn't have a blanket. Why? Because Junhui was holding it.
"It was you."
"My blanket got stolen."
This only earned a shake of the head from the taller boy, "Why are you lying? That tea, it's from you, too, isn't it?"
"I told you, Mingyu made it." Jihoon struggled, watching Junhui through narrowed eyes as he came closer, "What are you doing? Go away."
"Jihoon, don't think I haven't noticed." Junhui cut in, squatting down to eye-level with the flying squirrel, "You always do things for the members silently and give other people the credit."
Jihoon's lips had pressed into a thin line, "Don't be stupid, I'm not that type of person."
"You are, and I know it." Junhui insisted.
"I'm not!" Jihoon blurted out, finally releasing himself from the embarrassing position, "It's not like me to-"
"Why are you defining yourself?" Junhui sighed exasperatingly, "Look, everyone sees it even though you try to hide it." His serious look suddenly spread into a smirk, "Our Jihoonie is a kind soul~"
"Shut up!" This time the pillow hit Junhui squarely in the face.
The latter turned his head away, a hand covering the spot painfully. At the sight of this, Jihoon's eyes immediately widened, he quickly scurried across the bed, "Junhui, I'm so sorry, I didn't think it'd hit-"
"Gotcha~" Junhui grabbed Jihoon and pulled him into his embrace. The smaller boy struggled, throwing curses and death threats at Junhui, but then grew limp when Junhui leaned down to whisper in his ear, "Thank you. For everything."
[Epilogue]
Junhui felt himself getting rolled over, and he opened his eyes from sleep for the nth time that day. In front of him, was an upside-down television screen with the ending credits of the otome game he was playing. Once he adjusted his angle, he realized there were three worried faces looking at him.
"Hey, you okay? You were sleeping for a while, and you started making weird noises at one point." Soonyoung said, putting a hand on Junhui's forehead to check for a fever.
"We should probably tell the leader about this." Wonwoo said, leaning close into Junhui's face, touching his forehead to the latter's while Soonyoung made a squeaking noise and slapped Wonwoo's shoulder, pushing him away from Junhui.
"Here."
Junhui looked to the side, Jihoon was holding out a glass of water.
"...Jisoo-hyung said-"
"I'm sure he did." Junhui smiled, reaching up a hand to ruffle Jihoon's hair, "Thank you."
Soonyoung and Wonwoo stopped their squabbling and looked over at the two of them. Wonwoo raised an eyebrow and exchanged a look with Soonyoung.
Since when had Jihoon become a potential rival?