Chapter Text
Changbin yawned, stretching, as he left his room for breakfast. He turned on the light, moving mechanically towards the kitchen corner, when he noticed the shapes present on the sofa.
Chan was lying on his back, a little drooling on his chin, while one of his arms was resting on his eyes. The other was placed on the hips of the person who slept half on him, their face buried in his neck. The only thing Changbin could see was their messy half-long brown hair. They were both covered with the blanket they usually kept on the couch.
The sports student blinked several times, wondering who the hell Chan had invited during the night? As he got closer, Changbin quickly realized that it was not a girl, but a boy. He rolled his eyes when his mind made the connection with the familiar coat placed on a chair in the entrance.
He reached out his hand, gently shaking Chan, who groaned, before pulling his arm out of his face.
"Good morning, Sleeping Beauty."
"What time is it?" He whispered, gradually becoming aware of his surroundings.
"Almost eight."
"Fuck, Bin. I don’t have class this morning."
"You don’t, but maybe your Prince Charming does."
Chan raised an eyebrow, before he realized who was half asleep on him. The memories of their night quickly came back to him as he began to gently shake Hyunjin.
He groaned, straightening up on the elbows. Maybe Chan’s heart was just a little tight at his sleepy look. Just a little.
"What’s going on…?"
"It’s eight. Do you have class?"
" … Oh, shit."
He then collapsed back against the chest on which he had slept, burying his face in the fabric of the hoodie. The psychology student stifled a laugh while the brunette complained against him.
"I missed my dance history class…"
"Sorry. If I had known you had a class, I would have set up an alarm." Chan apologized.
Hyunjin hummed, cuddling with him under Changbin’s amused gaze.
"Are you staying for breakfast?" He asked. "Jisung will be getting up soon."
"Well… I really should go home to get ready… I can’t miss all the classes of the day."
"Oh, we can get you some bathroom stuff. And I’m sure Chan will be happy to lend you some clothes."
Chan licked his lips nervously, trying not to get carried away by the idea of Hyunjin in his clothes. Even less in one of his hoodies. The brunette seemed to hesitate.
"Bin. Order McDonalds for breakfast."
"Are you trying to buy my time with junk food?" Hyunjin asked while getting up.
"Perhaps?" Chan laughed.
"Hmm… Fine. You won, I’m staying. But I have to be gone by 10:00!"
"Then let’s hurry up and order." Changbin said, taking his phone.
•
Chan looked at Hyunjin moving into his apartment, hurrying to gather his things. Unsurprisingly, his jeans had been too short for the brunette, but he had just rolled them, saying it was fashionable. On the other hand, his sweaters, already oversized for Chan, seemed to engulf the young man. Not that it bothered Chan, the vision of Hyunjin in his sweater, really did something to his heart.
The brunette quickly put on his sneakers and coat, before catching a backpack filled with an old pencil case with a few pens and a notepad of paper. That was all Chan had found in his old stuff so that Hyunjin could take some note.
"I’ll bring you everything back next morning, before my classes."
"It’s okay, don’t worry."
He offered him a smile before saying goodbye and going out. Chan waited a moment, that the door closed, before sighing. He really shouldn’t be doing that…
•
Jisung was unpacking his lunch, putting his bag on the wooden table. It was now mid-October and the weather had really cooled down, leaving a lot more space on the outdoor picnic tables. Few people still had the courage to eat outside in this temperature, which left more space for Jisung to evolve.
Today, he couldn’t eat with Chan and Changbin because their schedules didn’t fit. So he was determined to eat alone. Weeks before, he would have run to his apartment to eat in its security, not wanting to face the eyes of others. However, now things were better. He felt less spied on every move he made. The fact that most of the outdoor space on campus is empty also helps.
He was going to attack his leftover burger ordered this morning, when a bag also landed on the wooden table on which he was sitting. Freezing himself at once, half-way through his food, he looked up at the person who had seen fit to come and speak to him.
He certainly didn't expect to see blond hair and freckles, belonging to his roommate’s ex-boyfriend.
"Hey." Felix gently said with a smile. "May I sit?"
Swallowing, Jisung quickly weighed the pros and cons. Felix really didn’t look rude. He didn’t think he was here to make fun of him or anything. However, he was Changbin’s ex. Why was he here?
Not waiting for an answer, the blond sit down on the bench, taking out his own food.
"Why?" Jisung stammered.
"Why what?"
"Why did you come to me?"
Felix seemed really surprised by the question.
"Well… I usually eat with friends at this time, but they’re not here today. I was going to eat alone, but I saw you and I thought, "Why not eat with Jisung and get to know each other better?""
They looked at each other for a moment before Felix pouted, looking a little less sure of him.
"Unless you don’t want me here… "
"Are you here because of Changbin? I won’t help you get back together."
"It’s not all about him." The blond quickly said, rolling his eyes. "I’m not here because of him, I really want to get to know you… We’re the same age and you always seem so… nervous at the club. I thought if we made friends, it would make you feel better."
Jisung hummed, before carefully taking a bite of his food. Felix, seeming to understand that he wasn't going to get kicked off the table, also began to eat.
"Bin told me a little bit about you… Are you the anxious roommate?"
Jisung stifled a dry laugh.
"We are all anxious."
"Ah." Felix laughed. "I mean, social anxiety? I don’t want to make you uncomfortable."
"Yes, it’s me… And it’s okay, I know you a little bit because of the club, it’s less anxiety-provoking than if you were a complete stranger."
Felix smiled at him, seeming happy to hear that he wasn’t making him uncomfortable.
"What studies are you doing?" The blond asked. "You didn’t talk about it during the first meeting, and I’m curious."
"I’m in my second year of music production…"
"How did a psychology student, a sports student and a music production student, all from a different year, end up being roommates?" Felix laughed. "That’s a funny arrangement. Did you know each other before college?"
"No." Jisung replied, finishing his burger. "Changbin and Chan met when Bin arrived at university. Chan placed an ad because he was looking for a third roommate and they clicked right away… You must know this, but Changbin runs the music production club and I signed up for it on top of my classes… So I met them there. They offered to come and live with them when their roommate left."
"I see… I think it’s nice that the three of you are working well despite the fact that you have very different interests."
Jisung hummed.
"What about you? Do you live on campus?"
"Oh no. My parents pay a small apartment not far from university. I stayed on campus for the first six months of freshman year, but my roommate was a horror… I couldn’t live in such a small space with him, so I left."
"It must be nice to live alone. You don’t owe anyone anything…"
"It certainly has its advantages… But you feel lonely very quickly…"
"It’s true… Our apartment is rarely empty or silent." Jisung laughed. "But I wouldn’t mind being alone, I like that."
Felix finished eating, taking his time to put back his stuff in his bag.
"I’m sorry. I have to go." He apologized. "I have a paper due soon and I have to work on it... But it was super cool to talk to you! I hope we can become friends…"
The brunette nodded, the cheeks becoming a little red.
"Can we exchange our numbers?" Felix asked.
"Oh, yes, of course."
The youngest giggled while handing him his phone, seeming far too happy to just have a phone number.
•
Chan sit down against the wall of the stairwell, putting his bag next to him, while his friends were laughing, sitting around. He was beginning to rummage through his bag, looking for the rest of McDonalds that would be his lunch, when his phone vibrated in his pocket.
Hyunnie ✨
1:10 PM | Hey. Can I stay with you during lunch?
Chan quickly turned to his group of friends.
"Do you mind if someone joins us?"
"No." Bambam, the oldest, replied while shrugging his shoulders.
"Who?" Hongjoong asked, crunching through his food.
"Uh… just a friend."
He only half listened to Yanan’s whistling innuendo as he answered to Hyunjin.
Chris
1:12 PM | Of course. I’ll introduce you to my friends. We’re in the literature building, on the ground floor, under the stairs.
1:13 PM | Are you alone?
Hyunnie ✨
1:13 PM | Ok, I’m on my way.
1:14 PM | I avoid the rugby team…
Chan pouted at the sight of the text.
"Is that Hyunjin?" Changbin asked.
"Yeah."
"Hyunjin? Like Hwang Hyunjin, the cheerleader captain?" Bambam asked.
"Yes." The blond replied.
"Oh~ I didn’t know you knew him~." Yanan said.
Chan signed, feeling his cheeks warm.
'He’s just a friend. And don’t make any comments when he’s here, you’re going to make him uncomfortable."
"We’ll see." Yanan laughed. "We’re not going to miss an opportunity to embarrass you."
The older one was about to complain, when a brunette head passed through his field of vision.
"Funny place to eat." Hyunjin said, laughing.
"Maybe, but it’s quiet." Chan replied.
Changbin moved, making room between them. The cheerleader thanked him, sitting against the wall, almost glued against Chan.
"So Hyunjin, this is Bambam, Yanan and Hongjoong. They’re in my class."
"Oh, nice to meet you!"
They discussed quickly, starting to eat their food, when the brunette leaned towards Chan, giving him a little shoulder. He turned to him, humming a silent question.
"You- I’m really holding you back." He whispered.
"What? What did I do?"
"Next time you lend me a hoodie… Make sure there’s nothing incriminating on it."
Chan raised an eyebrow, before Hyunjin grabbed the front of the sweatshirt and pushed it towards him. There he saw the small motif embroidered on his chest. His heart missed a beat. In his eagerness this morning, he wanted to give a hoodie whose sleeves weren't ruined by his teeth, and which was still in good enough condition to look new. However, he had given him his swim team hoodie, with the team logo embroidered on the front. Fortunately, it was only a generic hoodie, given as a gift to the team at the end of the last competition season. So there was no embroidered name behind it, unlike his team jacket.
"It’s okay." He said. "It could have been worse. My name isn't embroidered."
"There may not have your fucking name, Mister Bang. But the cheer girls saw the embroidery, and they started asking me which member of the swim team I had spent the night with. This afternoon, it will have been all over the university." He complained. "There are not 46 of you on this team, as far as I know."
The older student pouted, remembering that there were actually only eight of them on the team. Two had been in a relationship for a long time, at least long enough for it to be known. Three were known to be straight. There were only three people left in the pile, including him, who could be suspected.
'Are you afraid the university will think you’re sleeping with me?"
"No." Hyunjin quickly said as his ears turned red. "I just don’t like it when there are false rumors about me."
"If you’re not having sex, then why are you wearing his hoodie?" Yanan laughed softly.
Both raised their heads, blushing as they tried to make excuses.
"We played video games until late." Chan ended up saying. "Hyunjin stayed and I just lent him clothes so he could take his classes."
Yanan hummed, a smirk painted on his face. He clearly didn't believe what they were saying.
"You see." Hyunjin whispered. "That’s how rumors spread."
"I'm sorry. I’ll be more careful next time."
The cheerleader hummed, bringing the fabric of the hoodie against his nose.
"It’s okay, the rumors probably won’t be about you anyway."
"Why?"
"Well… You’re straight, so there is little chance that people think I slept with you."
Chan was about to answer, when Changbin burst out laughing on the other side. Hyunjin was going to ask why he was laughing, when his phone rang.
"Shit, I have to go." Hyunjin said. "I have a paper due, like, in an hour. I have to run home to get it."
He quickly got up, gathering his things.
"See you later." He said quickly, ruffling Chan’s hair.
The oldest had no time to say anything before the other ran away. There was a slight silence, before Chan put his hand in his hair to try to discipline them again. Not at all to try to get a reminiscence of the hand of the brunette in his hair.
"I can’t believe he thinks you’re straight." Changbin laughed.
"Maybe it’s better that way." Chan gently said.
"You’re not going to deny it?" Hongjoong asked, surprised.
"Not if he doesn’t ask me. That would be embarrassing."
Hongjoong and the others looked at each other before shrugging their shoulders. After all, that was their problem.
•
Hyunnie ✨
3:20 PM | Hey. Why did Changbin laugh earlier?
Chan raised his head from his phone, trying to focus on the teacher who explained to them and demonstrated the body reflexes related to certain situations. However, his phone vibrated again.
Hyunnie ✨
3:22 PM | Hey Mister Bang~ Don’t leave me on read. @_@
Chris
3:24 PM | I try to write down my class, unlike someone ~
Hyunnie ✨
3:25 PM | You’re mean. ㅠㅠ
3:25 PM | I’m on break.
Why did Hyunjin use cute emojis all the time? It made it so much more complicated not to smile foolishly as soon as he received texts from him. Chan had no right to develop a crush on him. It was written in big bold, at the top of his Not to do list.
Chris
3:27 PM | Well, I'm not~
Hyunnie ✨
3:28 PM | Chrisssssssssssssssssssss \(>o<)/
3:29 PM | Why was Changbin laughing? I want to know!
Chris
3:34 PM | He was laughing because you said I was straight.
Read at 3:34 PM.
Holding a sigh, he focused again on the class. Well, it was missed to not to make things awkward between them…
•
Jeongin left his last class of the day, feeling exhausted. He had waited until the whole class was empty, so that he could go out last. He didn't want to rub shoulders with the crowd. He readjusted his bag on his shoulder, ready to reach the university exit, when a hand landed on his back.
He jumped, holding back a scream. His heart missed a beat as he struggled to get away from the person. They dropped him immediately.
"Don’t touch me!"
"I’m sorry. I forgot."
The young man walked away, turning to the somewhat familiar voice, to see Seungmin standing beside him. The brunette put his glasses on his nose, clearly destabilized by Jeongin’s reaction.
"You scared me…"
"Sorry, really. I did it out of habit, it got out of my head."
Jeongin hummed, uncomfortable. What did the other one want from him? He had to hurry up to go, otherwise he was going to miss his bus.
"Did you want something?" He hurriedly asked.
"Um, not really… I saw you come out of class, and I thought I’d come and talk to you."
"I’m sorry. I don’t have time. I have to catch my bus."
"Oh… Okay… Can I come with you to the stop?"
More and more uncomfortable, the youngest looked away, trying to find an excuse to refuse. Would Seungmin take it wrong if he declined again? He didn’t look mean, but he clearly didn’t want to make him angry…
Jeongin finally nodded, agreeing that Seungmin should accompany him. What could go wrong? They were going to be on the street. There were people. He could easily ask for help if the young man came after him.
"You look nervous." Seungmin gently said, walking with him, leaving some distance between them.
"Yes, I… I’ve always been like that…"
"Ah? You know, there are very good remedies for nervousness… It helps me a lot in general, especially during exams…"
The young man hummed again, trying to appear interested. However, his mind was running at full speed on Seungmin and his possible intentions towards him. Without realizing it, they quickly arrived at the bus stop.
"How long before your bus arrives?"
"In two minutes."
"I’ll wait with you then."
"Don’t you take it?" Jeongin asked, curious.
"No, I live on campus." Seungmin replied, shrugging his shoulders.
"So why did you come with me? I thought you took the bus too."
Seungmin raised an eyebrow to Jeongin’s backward motion.
"I just wanted to have a little chat, to get to know each other… Are you… afraid of me?"
"No. Don't be foolish." The youngest replied with a trembling voice.
"Jeongin, are you-"
He didn't have time to finish his sentence, because the bus parked in front of them. Without a goodbye, Jeongin jumped in as soon as the doors opened.
"Jeongin, wait a minute-"
The doors closed, leaving a Seungmin in shock on the sidewalk. Jeongin took a seat on the bus, on the other side, so as not to have to look at his surprised and full of pity face that he must have displayed.
Now he was going to have to avoid him…
•
Hyunnie ✨
7:53 PM | What do you mean? You’re not straight?
Chan put his phone back, his heart beating anxiously in his ribcage. Shit. Hyunjin had left him on read all afternoon, causing him more anxiety than he needed, and he would come back in his messages in the evening to resume the conversation as if nothing had happened.
Wiping his sweaty palms on his pants, he picked up his plate of pasta to finish it quickly.
"Chan, are you all right?" Jisung asked.
"Yeah, just tired."
His phone vibrated against his thigh again.
Hyunnie ✨
7:55 PM | Hey Chris, don’t leave me on read.
7:55 PM | I know I left you in read all the afternoon, I’m sorry! >.<;;
7:56 PM | The class has resumed and I haven't had a second to answer you so far.
Chan fiddled his fingers, tried to be convinced by what he said. He didn’t really seem uncomfortable…
•
Hyunjin was rolling on his bed, frantically tapping on his phone to send messages to the swimmer. He returned a grumbling of frustration to the Read at 7:56 PM, which appeared under his messages.
Drama Lama 🍀
7:57 PM | Mister Bang! I know you’re reading the messages. >ㅁ<
Mister Bang 🌊💙
7:59 PM | Sorry, I was busy.
Drama Lama 🍀
7:59 PM | Lol Stop lying. Say you were pouting because I didn’t answer you all afternoon.
Mister Bang 🌊💙
8:03 PM | I thought I made you uncomfortable…
The cheerleader raised an eyebrow. Uncomfortable? Uncomfortable with what? If Chan was talking about his last message about not being straight....
Hyunjin hadn't been uncomfortable. Well, he had been very surprised. It had turned in his head during all the afternoon, incapacitating him to concentrate perfectly on the practice of the new choreography. Chan didn’t really have the profile of a guy who liked guys, but again, he was no one to judge. He just hid it well.
More than that, he had felt a touch of joy at the news. Probably because at least he felt he could be fully understood. Not at all because Chan was a pretty cute boy.
Drama Lama 🍀
8:05 PM | Uncomfortable?
8:05 PM | Because you are not straight?
8:06 PM | Of course not! I will not hide that I am surprised •ㅅ• but not uncomfortable!
8:06 PM | I’m gay. Why would that make me uncomfortable?
Mister Bang 🌊💙
8:07 PM | I don’t know. I just got anxious…
Drama Lama 🍀
8:08 PM | Sorry. I should have at least sent you a message.
8:09 PM | But. You’re really not straight?
8:09 PM | No offense, but you don’t look gay.
Mister Bang 🌊💙
8:10 PM | I'm pan.
8:10 PM | Don’t you believe me?
Drama Lama 🍀
8:11 PM | Well. You dated the same girl for 3 years. I think that’s enough to forget the taste of a dick.
Mister Bang 🌊💙
8:12 PM | You are disgusting. ┬┴┬┴┤(·_├┬┴┬┴
Drama Lama 🍀
8:13 PM | YOU USE EMOJIS (ﾉ◕ヮ◕)ﾉ*:·ﾟ✧
Mister Bang 🌊💙
8:14 PM | Because of you.
8:14 PM | I copy pasted it from internet.
Drama Lama 🍀
8:15 PM | I’m not really surprised. ┐(シ)┌
•
"Hey, Jisung!"
The youngest raised his head, surprised, when a blur of blond hair almost crushed on him. Recognizing Felix immediately, he let himself be.
They had been texting almost non-stop for a week, and Jisung had to admit that he was really nice. They had immediately hooked on many subjects, including making fun of Changbin. Speaking of Changbin, Jisung had told him absolutely nothing about his new budding friendship with the blond. He wasn’t sure what his roommate would think, so he preferred to keep it a secret for now.
"Hi Lix."
"Are you done with classes?"
"For now. I have tutoring later in the day."
"Will you join me for coffee?"
The brunette began to pout, but he was quickly cut off by the dancer.
"I know a coffee shop where there’s a floor. It’s rarely crowded. It’s super quiet, I promise!"
"Hmm… Okay. I follow you."
Jumping almost with joy, the blond dragged him off campus, on an adjacent street where a small family coffee shop was held. Once set up, they began discussing their day of classes until the waitress brought them their coffee.
"So?" Felix started. "Did you decide whether or not to come to the club meeting tomorrow?"
Jisung pouted, clearly not excited by the idea.
"I don’t know… There are a lot of people…"
"But you know most of us now, don’t you? I mean, Chan and Changbin are out of the category because you’re roommates. I think I can safely say that we are friends now… Right?"
"Of course we’re friends, Lix!"
"Glad to hear it! So I’m out of the category too." He laughed. "From what I’ve been following, you did get to know Hyunjin a little better? He told me that he had breakfast with you a few days ago…"
"Yes…"
"So it’s just Jeongin, Seungmin and Minho. This is going to be the third time you see them, and they didn’t say anything weird to you."
The brunette took a sip of his iced coffee.
"Minho makes me anxious."
"Ah?"
"Yeah… I don’t know why… He has this kind of aura around him that causes me anxiety."
"Well, I don’t know him any more than that, but I don’t think he’s mean. If it makes you feel better, I’ll sit next to you."
"You realize that you will literally be sitting at a seat from Changbin." Jisung quietly giggled.
"Don’t tell me that!" The blond complained. "I still can’t believe we both joined this club, to complain about each other."
Quietly humming, Jisung leaned against his chair.
"You know, he misses you." He gently said.
"I miss him too…" Felix admitted.
"So why aren’t you talking to each other?"
"Because we’re going to fall back on our traditional pattern… I don’t want to try to get back together with him without us trying to solve our problems first."
"Do you still love him?" Jisung asked, surprised.
"Of course… But don’t repeat it."
"All right." He laughed.
The blond finished his drink before gently singing the song that could be heard on the radio.
"I think you should talk to the club." Felix finally say. "It would help you…"
"I know, it’s just complicated to talk to people I don’t know…"
"Yes, that’s true… But at the end of the day, it’s people you don’t know that are the easiest to ignore if you want to."
Jisung gently nodded.
"I’ll think about it."