Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

"It's easy, guys. Once you pass the village, just keep driving straight for about ten minutes down the forest trail. Eventually, the path kind of ends, just turn right where it stops. There's no marked road there, but it's not that hard to drive through with the car. From there, you keep going for, what, like five more minutes...? Right, Jun?"

In the background, a voice replied, slightly uncertain, "Yeah, kind of, it's not that important, Minghao, they'll see it anyway" Junhui says.

"Whatever it is, you'll know when you get there. You can't miss it, it's the only house around".

Seungcheol listened carefully to the audio playing from Jihoon's phone, who was sitting on the passenger seat, and then spoke up, "Did you get it, then?" He asked, his brow slightly furrowed.

Seungcheol nodded, "Yeah, got it..." He held a cigarette out the window with one hand, the other still steady on the wheel.

Chan pulled the collar of his shirt over his nose, "God, it reeks in here" He muttered under his breath.

Seungcheol looked at him through the rearview mirror, smirking, "What, the cigarette or Soonyoung?"

That pulled Soonyoung out of whatever daze he'd been in, "Hey, what's that supposed to mean? I showered this morning".

Seungcheol turned toward Jihoon, raising his eyebrows like he was looking for confirmation, since Soonyoung and Jihoon were roommates. 

Jihoon gave a small nod, "He actually did".

Chan lowered his shirt collar, inching a little closer to the friend beside him, even though they were already squeezed close in the backseat, "Oh, you smell like lavender, that's nice".

Soonyoung beamed, "See? Jihoon told me it was too strong".

Chan gave him a quick nod, "No no, it's good, way better than whatever Seungcheol's smoking".

The oldest in the group scoffed, "It's almost done, relax..." He paused, then asked,
"By the way, did Joshua leave already? Or is he just asleep?"

Chan turned slightly to glance at the figure beside him. Joshua was leaning back against the car window, head tilted awkwardly, mouth slightly open as he breathed quietly, eyes completely shut.

"Holy shit, yeah, he's totally asleep" The youngest confirmed.

Jihoon shrugged and let out a small laugh, "He called me at two in the morning last night, he said he went to a club with Seokmin... Maybe that's why he's so tired now".

Seungcheol furrowed his brow, "He went out clubbing with Seokmin knowing we had to be here by nine in the morning? Smart" He muttered.

Jihoon nodded as he lazily played with his phone, slowly passing it from one hand to the other,
"Yeah, I know, from what I gathered, they were drinking... But Josh looked pretty drained".

Chan joined in from the back, "If Shua's like this, I can't imagine how Seokmin's doing, he's probably completely wiped out".

Soonyoung chuckled, "For real... What were they even doing out that late? Just drinking, or...?"
He trailed off, clearly thinking something through.

Jihoon turned slightly to glance at his roommate sitting in the back seat, "I think they like each other, but haven't said anything yet".

Seungcheol hummed, his expression thoughtful, "You think so?... Not long ago Seokmin told me there was this girl he liked".

Jihoon nodded again, "Yeah yeah, that's true. But she ditched him right away, Seokmin told me she was one of those 'hook-up and disappear' types, and he's looking for something more serious".

Chan made a small noise, suddenly realizing everything, "That makes more sense now... I don't know, honestly, maybe they're just really close friends".

Jihoon rolled his eyes, "Come on, Chan. You don't go out drinking all night and wandering around Itaewon with just any 'close friend.' Itaewon, dude, not just some random neighborhood. And they don't even live anywhere near there, they went all the way out on purpose".

Chan made a slight grimace, "I don't know, Hyung..." He murmured.

Seungcheol suddenly squinted ahead, "Do I turn here? Looks like the road ends".

Soonyoung glanced out the window, "Yeah, this must be it, we're probably close"
He spoke softly, with a tone of quiet confirmation.

Jihoon raised his arms a little and stretched with a yawn, "Alright, someone wake Joshua up back there" He said.

Chan, sitting in the middle seat, took the job without hesitation, "Hyung" He called once, twice, three times. 

On the fourth try, Joshua finally lifted his head with a jolt, "What-what is it? What's going on?" He mumbled, wiping a bit of drool from the corner of his mouth, clearly dazed from his deep sleep.

Soonyoung stifled a laugh, and Chan let out a soft sigh, "We're almost there" He informed him, and Joshua gave a groggy nod, sitting up straighter and fixing his seatbelt.

Everyone seemed to be in a pretty good mood. Even Seungcheol was smiling a little, at least until he remembered something: Jeonghan was coming too.

Normally, that wouldn't have been a big deal. 

Jeonghan and the others were arriving in a different car with Mingyu, since his car was big enough to fit them all comfortably.

Seungcheol had had a crush on Jeonghan for years. Since before university, actually. They were both twenty-nine now, which meant he'd been carrying that feeling for too long.

He'd tried to drop subtle hints over time, but Jeonghan never seemed interested, not really, not even after what had happened before they'd started college.

Seungcheol never pushed it, never confessed outright. That would've made things even more awkward between them. 

They were close friends, and that friendship felt too important to risk.

And lately, they hadn't even seen each other that much. It had been almost a year since Jeonghan had landed a great job that kept him constantly busy, he was a sommelier, and he liked that job.

Seungcheol had told himself to move on. He had tried. But the truth was, Jeonghan still lingered in the back of his mind. They hadn't seen each other in about a month now. Just a couple of brief phone calls, nothing more. And so, the idea of seeing him again, that day, suddenly felt strange.

Seungcheol snapped out of his thoughts only when he noticed the trees around them beginning to thin out. The dense forest opened up into a circular clearing, revealing a house in the middle, pretty large, at least two stories tall.

"Holy shit" Chan muttered in awe, "We're staying here for ten days?"

Jihoon corrected him casually, "Thirteen".

Chan turned his head quickly, eyes wide, "Thirteen? Jun told me ten" He said, keeping his gaze locked on the house while Seungcheol carefully drove down the uneven path. The road wasn't the safest, so going slow was the only smart option.

"It was ten at first" Jihoon explained, "But Minghao said the woman renting the house made them a deal, if they took it for a few extra days, it would cost just a few more won, so, they went for it".

Chan nodded slowly, clearly impressed, "That's so fucking cool".

Joshua ran a hand down his face, still waking up, "Yeah, you say that now" He mumbled, "Give it four days, you won't be able to stand anyone anymore".

Soonyoung rolled his eyes and unbuckled his seatbelt, "Not all of us are named Joshua Hong" He said under his breath.

Joshua didn't reply, even though part of him kind of wanted to. But he let it go. There was no point in starting a fight already.

Seungcheol pulled the handbrake, and finally, the boys were free to get out.

From inside the house, Minghao peeked out the window, "Hey, there's a car outside".

Junhui came up behind him, resting a hand lightly on Minghao's waist, "Oh yeah, that's Seungcheol's" He confirmed before moving toward the kitchen, "Hey, the landlady left us the extra sheets, right? I already set up our room and the single one" He spoke while neatly stacking water bottles into the fridge. 

Minghao nodded, "They're in the basement" He replied, "Come on, you can deal with them later, let's go down and meet the ones who just got here".

Junhui abandoned the bottles and followed him.

Minghao opened the front door and started heading down the steps, not too many, but still enough to need a quick pace. Junhui trailed right behind him.

"Hyung, pass me my backpack" Chan said, pointing toward the trunk, "Yeah, Chan, just a second" The oldest replied before handing it over to him.

"Here, Joshua" He added, pulling out the last suitcase from the trunk, which Joshua took with a tired expression.

Once all the backpacks and suitcases were out of the trunk, Seungcheol shut it and immediately turned to Minghao, who was walking over to them at a calm pace.

"Hey guys" Minghao greeted, raising one hand.

Seungcheol stepped up and gave him a quick hug, "Hey, thanks for having us" Minghao returned the hug and pulled back with a smile, "Don't mention it, a house this big just for the two of us felt kind of ridiculous, honestly".

"Hao, this house is insane" Chan said, his eyes scanning the facade with awe.

Junhui, who had just caught up to them, laughed softly, "You haven't even seen the inside yet" Then added, "There are six double rooms, three on the first floor and three upstairs, plus a small single room on the second floor, so it fits thirteen people just right".

"And there's a little terrace too" Minghao added casually, pointing up, "You can see the forest from it, it's gorgeous at sunset".

Seungcheol was just about to reply when the sound of another car, loud and unmistakably chaotic, cut him off. Most of them were pretty sure it had to be Mingyu. And they were right.

As they turned to check, they saw Mingyu's black Jeep barreling toward them, definitely being driven with a lot less caution than Seungcheol's car had been.

He pulled up fast next to their vehicle, tires crunching the gravel and kicking up a heavy cloud of dust that immediately made most of the group cough and wave their hands in front of their faces.

Soonyoung squinted, swatting the air to clear his view, and Jihoon stepped back behind him to avoid the worst of it.

The dust settled quickly, and soon Mingyu jumped out of the driver's seat, "Hey!" He called out with that goofy smile of his, "You guys beat us here, so we were the last ones, huh?" He scratched the back of his head, then made his way to Minghao, giving his best friend a solid slap on the shoulder, "This place looks sick" He added, gesturing toward the house.

Minghao, still slightly annoyed by the dust, stared at him unimpressed, "Why do you insist on getting the biggest car if you don't know how to drive it properly?" He asked flatly.

Mingyu rolled his eyes, "Oh, come on, don't start, if it weren't for me, we'd have needed more than two cars to get here, be grateful" He replied, shrugging. 

Annoying to admit, but he had a point.

Meanwhile, the rest of the guys in his car began to get out. Seokmin looked visibly tired, his shoulders slumped, his face puffy from sleep. He threw a brief glance at Joshua, raising a hand in a casual wave. But his expression lingered a little too much.

The guys from Seungcheol's car shared quiet looks with each other, silently recalling the conversation they'd had earlier on the road.

The guys who had just gotten out of the car greeted the others, and Seungcheol couldn't help but let his eyes fall on Jeonghan. He'd been the last to get out of the Jeep and was already busy opening the trunk to start unloading the luggage. No one was helping him.

Seungkwan had gone straight over to hug Minghao and Junhui, thanking them enthusiastically, as did Hansol and Wonwoo. They had all completely left Jeonghan behind.

Seungcheol took a breath, gathered his nerve, and walked over to the Jeep.

"They left you here on your own" He muttered, grabbing one of the suitcases from the trunk and setting it down on the ground.

Jeonghan looked up, slightly wide-eyed with surprise, but then smiled, "Oh my God, hey" He said, brushing a strand of blonde hair behind his ear, "Thanks, feels like everyone suddenly forgot they brought bags with them".

He placed a backpack down on the gravel as Seungcheol let out a quiet breath of relief. That had gone way less awkwardly than he'd feared. He simply kept helping, eventually shutting the trunk once they were done.

"You good? You drove all the way here, right?" Jeonghan asked. 

Seungcheol nodded, "Yeah, pretty much, Joshua slept through the whole ride, the others were awake, so we talked a bit. Otherwise I think I would've passed out at the wheel".

Jeonghan let out a small laugh, "Hell, no, you'd all be dead then" That earned a smile from Seungcheol.

Jeonghan went on, "Seokmin slept the whole way too, Mingyu had to literally drag him out of bed this morning, we were all out  of his place and he wasn't answering, no calls, no intercom, nothing".

He glanced over at Seokmin, then added, "So Mingyu just went up, the door was unlocked, and Seokmin was still passed out in bed, completely knocked out".

Seungcheol knew exactly why Seokmin was that exhausted, but maybe that wasn't the right time to bring that up to Jeonghan.

"Guys, let's head inside!" Junhui's voice called out, catching both their attention.

They turned to see the rest of the group slowly making their way toward the stairs.

Jeonghan looked down at the bags by his feet, "Hey, no- wait" He called out, raising his voice, "Come get your stuff!"

Luckily, the guys who had ridden in Mingyu's Jeep remembered and turned around to grab their things. Seungcheol sighed, but smiled, that was kind of funny.

And finally, the boys stepped inside the house, a house big enough to host all thirteen of them. It was one of the first times they were all together in a place that was actually this spacious. They'd been on trips before, spent days together as a full group, but the places had always been smaller.

"Sit there" Junhui said, pointing at the couches, yes, couches, plural. There were three of them, all perfect for a group their size, even if Junhui had preferred staying standing.

Once everyone was seated, Junhui started to speak, "So, in the house there are six double bedrooms, three on the first floor and three on the second, and then there's one small single room. That means we'll all have roommates, except for one of us" He explained.

He was quickly interrupted, "So, the lucky one" Wonwoo noted, leaning forward with his elbows on his knees.

Junhui continued, "Let's just say... Hao and I already took one of the rooms. I mean, it has a double bed, and we figured none of you would really want to share that, so we just took it ourselves" He said, glancing at his boyfriend, who gave a small nod.

That's when the obvious question came up. Even though he still looked half-asleep, Seokmin asked, "And what about the rest of us? We can decide who to sleep with?" He rubbed his face, trying to shake off the sleepiness, or maybe just the leftover exhaustion from the night before.

Junhui pointed at him, "Exactly what I was about to say" He turned for a moment toward a cabinet next to him, opened the top drawer, and pulled out a stack of cards.

"To keep things simple and avoid unnecessary drama, we're using these" He placed them on the low table in the center of the seating area and sat down on the floor.

"What kind of cards are those?" Hansol asked, leaning in a bit, "Don't think I've ever seen them before" He murmured.

Junhui pulled them out of the pack and showed them quickly, "Super simple cards. They just have numbers on them, almost all of them are pairs, except for one, that one will go to whoever ends up in the single room" He explained while starting to shuffle them.

"So basically, each person gets a card with a number. For example, if you get number one, someone else will also have a number one, and that's your roommate".

Seungkwan watched Junhui shuffle, then asked, "So it's like, we just find the matching number, and that's who we sleep with, right?"

Minghao let out a laugh, "Yeah, it's way easier than Jun makes it sound, he overcomplicates everything".

Junhui scoffed, "Don't put pressure on me, I'm concentratin" He grumbled, finally starting to hand out the cards, excluding himself and his boyfriend.

Once Junhui finished handing out the cards, he sat back down on the floor again, "Okay, flip them".

The boys turned their cards over, and immediately glances started flying across the room.

The room assignments ended. Seungkwan ended up with Hansol, Mingyu with Wonwoo, Jihoon with Soonyoung, Joshua with Seokmin, and Seungcheol with Chan.

After a moment, when all the pairs were found, Wonwoo asked, "Wait... Who got the single room then?"

All eyes turned toward Jeonghan. He lifted his card slowly, a soft smile pulling at his lips, "Uh... Me".

Minghao got up from the bed and stretched a little, "Come on, we'll show you the house, and you can finally see your rooms" He offered, and the boys followed.

Everyone got a look at their own room. They were all fairly spacious, even if they were shared. It was kind of insane, such a big house, and the bedrooms were just as large.

Upstairs, there were three bathrooms: two with showers and one without. Downstairs, there was just one, but apparently, there was also one in the basement. Seriously, insane.

The only small room was Jeonghan's. It wasn't tiny, but it definitely wasn't as big as the others. There was just enough space for a wardrobe, a single bed, and a desk.

Jeonghan sighed as he placed his backpack at the foot of the bed. He looked around. Even if it was small, he liked it.

As he was taking in the space, a knocking sound pulled his attention. The door was already open, and Junhui was gently tapping his fist against it like an idiot, "Tiny, huh?" He said, leaning against the frame.

Jeonghan smiled, "Yeah, kind of, but honestly, I don't mind it" He shrugged.

Junhui gave a nod, "Come see mine and Minghao's" And Jeonghan followed him out.

The two boys headed toward Minghao and Junhui's room. Junhui opened the door first, and Jeonghan was left speechless the moment he saw the inside.

They stepped in, the room was huge, maybe even bigger than the living room they'd all been in earlier. There was a large double bed, a wardrobe stretching across an entire wall, and a massive sliding glass door that led out to a balcony facing the forest.

"You two really picked the nicest room, huh?" Jeonghan muttered, walking around and eyeing even the smallest details.

Junhui let out a small laugh, "Well, kind of... Like we said, I didn't think anyone would actually want to share this room, so me and Minghao just took it" He explained again, moving to sit at the foot of the bed, "The lady we rented the house from told us she inherited it from her great-grandmother, I'm not sure how exactly, but apparently it was passed down to her after her death" He went on, following Jeonghan's movements as he wandered toward the big window.

"She said she didn't really know what to do with it, that's why she put it up for rent. She has another house in the village you guys passed earlier, in Jeollabukdo, but she actually lives in a different city... From what I gathered, her family's really wealthy"He continued, casually, "Her great-grandmother had a big family, she lived here with her brothers and parents too, sons... That's why the house is this big".

Jeonghan furrowed his brows, "And why'd they buy a house out here, so isolated?"

Junhui immediately corrected him, "Oh no, they didn't buy it, her great-grandmother built it with her husband".

Jeonghan blinked, taken aback, "What? A house this big?"

Junhui shrugged, "Well, it was a different time, maybe it didn't even look like this a few years ago, you know? If it's been passed down through generations, it probably went through a ton of renovations".

Jeonghan nodded slowly, maybe Junhui had a point.

Jeonghan slid the window open and stepped out onto the balcony, immediately met by the cool air of the area. It was so different from the city, quieter, calmer. Every now and then, he could hear the faint voices of their friends in the distance, but aside from that, it was silent. 

Jeonghan didn't mind. He liked the quiet, especially at night.

He leaned forward on the railing, taking a slow breath as he turned slightly to look behind him, Junhui had followed him out, "What's it like around here at night? Peaceful?" Jeonghan asked, keeping his gaze ahead while his fingers drummed lightly on the railing.

Junhui walked over slowly, hands tucked into his pockets, stopping beside him, "Minghao and I only got here yesterday afternoon. We haven't had much time to explore, but yeah... It seems pretty peaceful overall, even in the evening" He replied, then turned his head more deliberately toward Jeonghan, narrowing his eyes a little in thought, "You asking because of... That problem?"

The question was cautious, the specificity of Jeonghan's curiosity had clearly caught him off guard.

Jeonghan gave a subtle nod, not breaking his gaze from the view, "Yeah... It's just hard to sleep so..." Jeonghan muttered, almost like he was talking more to himself than to his friend.

Junhui sighed and kicked lightly at the wooden floorboards with the tip of his shoe, "Well, either way, just don't go out wandering at night, alright? The area doesn't feel dangerous, but still... Who knows, you might attract some wild animal or something".

Jeonghan raised an eyebrow at him, "There are wild animals around here?"

Junhui just shrugged lazily, glancing back toward the sliding door, "I'm not sure".

And just like that, the conversation faded into the quiet around them.

And just as silence had settled between them, Minghao's voice echoed from below the balcony.

"Hey, Jun! Jeonghan! Come down!" He called, waving casually.

Junhui smiled, giving Jeonghan a light slap on the back, "Let's go see what he wants" He said, and the two of them headed toward the stairs.

As they walked through the hallway, they passed by some of the others already in their rooms.

Jihoon was stretched out on his bed, while Soonyoung stood beside the open suitcase, muttering about forgetting to pack socks. Further along, Hansol and Seungkwan could be heard talking quietly in their own room, the door just barely ajar.

Then a door suddenly flew open with a loud crack, slamming against the wall right in front of Junhui.

Both boys flinched, Junhui even took a full step back with a small gasp, hand instinctively going to his chest.

Standing in the doorway, completely unfazed, was Seungcheol.

"Oh" He said, looking at them dead serious, "Do you guys think the shower pressure here is strong or weak?"

A beat of silence.

"Are you out of your mind?" Junhui finally asked, blinking hard, "You nearly gave me a heart attack".

Seungcheol looked at him innocently, "What? I was just asking-"

"You kicked the door open like a horror movie" Jeonghan added, brushing past him, "For that question?"

Seungcheol threw his arms up in the air, visibly confused, "Me? I just asked a question" He grumbled, half-irritated, half-amused.

And as if on cue, Joshua appeared at the top of the stairs, "Oh my God, are you guys fighting already?" He asked brightly, like he'd been waiting for that exact moment.

Seungcheol let out a sigh, "We're just having a discussion, go back to bed, you look like you need it. Badly".

Joshua shot him a glare as he headed down the stairs.

Junhui joined him with a light chuckle, following after, while Jeonghan stayed back for a second.

He looked Seungcheol up and down with a teasing glint in his eye, "So, you let Junhui walk all over you now?" He asked with a smirk.

Seungcheol shook his head, a small laugh escaping his lips, "Come on, we're just messing around... Right?" He said with a shrug.

Jeonghan smiled back at him before finally making his way down the stairs.

Seungcheol found himself smiling a few seconds longer than he meant to as he watched Jeonghan walk away.

He felt a little stupid for still having a crush on him, for smiling like an idiot as if they were still nineteen.

It was dumb, but Jeonghan was beautiful in Seungcheol's eyes, as a person and in appearance.
He had everything Seungcheol looked for in someone.

Chan's voice pulled Seungcheol back to the house, and out of his thoughts, "So, do you actually need to shower right now?"

Seungcheol sighed, "Nah, maybe tonight, I was just asking" He replied with a casual tone as he closed the door again.

Junhui was already making his way downstairs when he noticed Mingyu stepping out of his room with a camera in hand. Mingyu looked up briefly, even though he was clearly focused on adjusting the settings on the device, and raised his eyebrows.

"Okay, cool, we're five already, go outside with Minghao, I don't wanna start losing people this early" He said, eyes immediately dropping back to the camera screen.

Jeonghan furrowed his brows, "Wait, what are we doing?" He asked, and Mingyu answered without looking up, "Minghao asked me to bring the camera so we could take some photos during the trip. He wanted to start with a group photo outside-"

The sound of soft slippers dragging on the floor caught their attention. Wonwoo appeared from his room, expression blank.

"Oh, Hyung, go out with them" Mingyu said casually, reaching for his wrist.

"Yeah okay, don't touch me, I get it" Wonwoo muttered in that tired, deadpan voice of his, pulling his arm back like it was the most effort he'd put in all day.

Junhui and Jeonghan exchanged a quick glance, but honestly, it made sense. A group photo did sound like a good idea. The two headed outside, where Minghao was fiddling with a tripod, clearly trying to get it stable enough for Mingyu's camera.

Junhui walked over, "Need a hand?" He asked.

Minghao nodded, "Tighten this part, if it's loose, the camera's just gonna topple over the second we set it down".

Junhui nodded and grabbed the tightening knob on one of the tripod's legs, putting a bit of strength into it to make sure it held.

Jeonghan stood nearby, feeling kind of useless. Slowly, more members were making their way outside. Hansol and Seungkwan came out through the front door mid-conversation, while behind them Seokmin followed with a wobbly step, still clearly half-asleep.

Jeonghan sighed and started wandering around. The area outside was lush and green, a kind of garden, though not really. More like the stretch of grass that surrounded the house, probably considered part of the property at that point.

He walked toward the edge, where a railing overlooked the landscape below. One look down was enough to know: falling from there would definitely hurt.

Nearby, a fallen tree trunk rested sideways on the ground. It looked like the perfect place to sit down at night, maybe to watch the stars.

Anyway, before he could look around any longer, Jeonghan turned and saw that almost everyone had arrived. Maybe Joshua and Soonyoung were still missing, but they'd be there any second.

He made eye contact with Seungkwan, who gave him a quick wave, "Hyung, come over here" He called out, and Jeonghan started heading in their direction.

Mingyu came out of the house, holding the camera. He mounted it onto the tripod, carefully adjusting it so it wouldn't fall over.

"Alright guys, start getting into place, stand however you want, just make sure you fit in the frame" He instructed, and the boys began shifting around to settle in.

Most of the space was already taken. Some were crouched down in the front, others were standing or leaning on each other.

The only spot left was next to Seungcheol, so Jeonghan slid in beside him.

"Mingyu, can you see me from there?" He asked.

Mingyu tilted his head slightly, squinting through the viewfinder, "Ehh... Kinda. Get a little closer to Cheol and you'll be perfect" He replied with a small grunt of effort.

Jeonghan stepped in a little closer, resting his hand lightly on Seungcheol's waist, "Like this?" He asked.

Mingyu nodded, "Perfect" He said, giving a thumbs up.

Meanwhile, Soonyoung and Joshua had just arrived and crouched down in front to save space.

Jeonghan leaned his cheek gently against Seungcheol's shoulder, slightly slumped, "Is it just me, or is it already hot out here?" He mumbled.

Seungcheol froze. He was pretty sure Jeonghan noticed the sudden stiffness, but didn't say anything. "It's mid-June, Jeonghan, it's not that hot yet" He replied, trying to keep his tone steady.

Jeonghan let out a short laugh, glancing at him, "Exactly, we're in the middle of a forest and it's still warm, that says something".

Seungcheol couldn't take it. He blushed slightly when the blond looked up at him. Trying not to make it obvious, he smiled, "Yeah, great point".

Before he could say anything else, Mingyu spoke up, "Okay, I'm starting the timer!"

He pressed a button, then quickly moved to sit down next to Soonyoung and Joshua on the ground.

Everyone got into position.

Then came the click.

Mingyu stood up quickly and walked over to the camera to check how the photo had turned out.

Everyone stayed still until Mingyu smiled, "Okay, perfect" He said, and everyone got up, almost relieved that it had turned out well on the first try.

Jeonghan moved away from Seungcheol, who finally had a bit of space to breathe normally again.

Soonyoung jumped up to check out the photo, and a few others followed him, curious to see how it had turned out. The rest naturally split off, doing their own thing like usual. 

*

The day was slowly fading into a golden light as the air began to cool down. It was almost dinner time, and the house had grown quieter, some of them had retreated to take showers, one by one, each reappearing with damp hair and more comfortable clothes.

Meanwhile, in the kitchen, Joshua, Minghao, and Seokmin were preparing dinner. They had agreed early on to take turns cooking, and that night was their shift. 

Joshua was calmly chopping vegetables, while Seokmin stirred something in a large pan, quietly humming to himself. Minghao moved with precision, setting out dishes, preparing sauces, and occasionally checking on the rice cooking on the stove.

On the other side of the house, outside in the open garden, there was a long wooden table they had decided earlier would be perfect for dinner. The soft rustling of trees filled the background, along with the distant clatter of kitchen activity.

Seungcheol and Jeonghan were outside, setting the table together. Jeonghan placed the cutlery while Seungcheol unrolled a simple linen table runner, smoothing it down with the palm of his hand.

There was a certain quiet between them, the only sounds were the rustling of leaves in the trees and the distant murmur of the others still chatting or moving around the house.

Jeonghan was the first to break the silence. Or rather, something else did.

He turned his head slowly toward the forest, his eyes narrowing as he picked up on a subtle sound, a soft, rhythmic rustling from the trees nearby, "Cheol" He said quietly, his voice barely above a whisper. Seungcheol looked up from the plates in his hands, eyebrows raised.

Jeonghan didn't say anything more. Instead, he simply held up a finger in front of his lips to gesture for silence, then pointed toward one of the taller trees that stood just past the edge of the clearing.

Seungcheol followed the direction of his finger, scanning the branches carefully. And then he saw it, perched calmly on a thick limb, only half-shadowed by the darkening sky, was a owl with round, alert eyes and speckled feathers.

"No way... Is that an owl?" He muttered under his breath, eyebrows lifting in surprise.

"Keep your voice down" Jeonghan said, stepping a little closer to him. He reached into his pocket, pulled out his phone, and quickly snapped a picture. 

After checking it for clarity, he turned the screen toward Seungcheol, "Look how beautiful it is, I think it's a collared scops owl, they're pretty common here" He zoomed in slightly on the photo, studying the coloring and feather patterns with quiet satisfaction, as if confirming something he already knew.

Seungcheol glanced between the picture and the bird itself, which hadn't moved at all, just sat there peacefully, like it didn't mind being watched.  "I didn't know you were into owls" He murmured, a soft chuckle in his voice.

Jeonghan shrugged with a lazy grin, "Boredom makes me learn the weirdest things sometimes, you'd be surprised".

Seungcheol smiled, watching him for just a second longer than necessary, before nodding and returning his attention to the table they were supposed to be setting. Only half of it was done.

Seungcheol let out a soft huff as he placed the last set of chopsticks on the table, "Okay, done, should we go call everyone? Maybe help carry the rest of the food over here too" He suggested, straightening up.

Jeonghan nodded, "Yeah, let's make ourselves useful a little longer" He replied, already following Seungcheol who had started walking back toward the house.

As they walked side by side, Jeonghan let out a quiet sigh, "I really like this place, the only thing is... I don't know, we're right next to a forest, Jun told me there might be animals around, what if we're bothering them?"

Seungcheol let out a short laugh, "Too late for that, Han, there's not much we can do now. Humans bother pretty much every living thing, don't they? This random house in the middle of the woods is proof enough".

Jeonghan raised an eyebrow, glancing over at him, "You're right... You and Joshua would totally get along on this topic".

Seungcheol chuckled, slipping his hands into his pockets, "We actually talked about it once, I think we ended up chatting for, I don't know, an hour?"

Jeonghan nodded in agreement, "Yeah? Well, we all know how Josh gets whenever it's about animals, starts talking like he's their spokesperson or something. No wonder he stopped eating meat".

As they walked slowly back toward the house, the evening air cooler now, Seungcheol let out a quiet breath, "You know" He started, voice low, "We don't really get to do this anymore".

Jeonghan glanced at him, a bit confused, "Do what?"

"This, just the two of us, spending time like this" Seungcheol explained, "Feels like... When we were younger, we used to hang out all the time. And now-" He paused, letting the rest hang in the air.

Jeonghan gave a small nod, his expression softening, "Yeah, life happens, I guess".

Seungcheol smiled faintly, "Still, it's nice, being out here, and also with you... I didn't realize how much I missed it until now".

There was a beat of silence. The cicadas hummed in the background, the trees rustled slightly in the wind. Jeonghan looked at him, a little longer than necessary.

"That's sweet, Cheol" He said eventually, with a small laugh, clearly trying to keep the tone light, "You're getting all soft on me today".

Seungcheol chuckled, "Maybe I was just feeling nostalgic".

Jeonghan smiled back, but something in his posture shifted, just a bit. Not tense, but careful. Seungcheol caught it. His eyes lingered for a moment, and then he looked away.

It wasn't a look or a new posture to Seungcheol's eyes; he had seen it many times on Jeonghan's face, especially when it was just the two of them talking.

Seungcheol remembered the time he was almost about to tell Jeonghan how he felt about him, but Jeonghan had made that strange expression, as if trying to stop him from saying what he wanted to say, just with a look. 

And now, Jeonghan was doing roughly the same thing again, probably because he didn't want to hear what Seungcheol really meant, just like it always went in the end.

It didn't matter, Seungcheol thought it was fine that way, what mattered was that he had at least managed to tell him it was nice to still spend time together, even if Jeonghan didn't care as much as Seungcheol did.

Seungcheol and Jeonghan made their way to the kitchen, where Seokmin, Joshua, and Minghao had almost finished cooking. Jeonghan walked up to Joshua, who was plating a large bowl of kimchi jjigae to share with everyone, and casually threw an arm around his shoulders.

"How's it going? Feeling better now that you're cooking?" He asked, giving him a firm pat on the chest.

Joshua rolled his eyes, "I was already feeling better the moment I got out of Seungcheol's car" He replied with a defiant smirk.

"Yeah, not buying that" Jeonghan said, tightening his arm around Joshua's neck just to annoy him. 

Joshua squirmed to break free, "Let me go, you asshole-" He grumbled, trying to wiggle away, but Jeonghan only held on harder.

Minghao turned around and groaned, "Hey, cut it out, let's bring the food out, I'm starving" He walked over to break up his two older friends, who clearly hadn't matured a bit, then he looked over at Seungcheol, "You're really just gonna stand there and let them fight?"

Seungcheol just shrugged, unbothered.

Minghao sighed loudly, "Fine, at least go call the others, or no one's gonna show up".

Since he wasn't doing anything useful anyway, Seungcheol gladly took on the task and headed off to gather the rest of the group, checking both the first and second floor for anyone still missing.

It turned out to be easier than expected, everyone had already made their way out of the house and was heading toward the table.

Once they were all seated, they finally started eating together. It had been a while since they'd all shared a meal like this, and it felt a little surreal to sit down and eat while the sky slowly turned darker above them.

Junhui stood up and switched on the outdoor lights, soft warm bulbs strung overhead that cast a cozy glow across the table. 

Somewhere in the woods nearby, the call of the owl they'd seen earlier echoed faintly through the trees, mixed with the buzz of cicadas humming in the background as everyone finished up their dinner.

A little while later, Mingyu appeared from the house with a couple of six-packs in his arms, "Okay, who wants beer?" He asked with a grin, already popping one open for himself.

"God, yes" Hansol replied, reaching out to grab one, "I need it after today".

One by one, the others reached out for a can, some of them thanking Mingyu, others just too busy already teasing one another again or talking over each other with old stories and jokes.

They stayed like that for hours, drinking, talking, laughing. Every now and then someone would wander off and come back with snacks or more drinks.

By the time it got close to midnight, the conversation had slowed into something quieter. A few of them had leaned back in their chairs, eyes half-closed from the food and alcohol.

Chan yawned without trying to hide it, "I'm seriously about to pass out right here, I think I'll go to sleep" He mumbled as he got up from his chair, rubbing his eyes.

"I'm going too" Jihoon said, already pushing his chair back, he then gave a small nod toward Soonyoung, who stood up from his chair.

Seokmin frowned, "Wait, Soonyoung, you're leaving too? Already?" He asked as he stood up as well.

Soonyoung nodded, "Yeah, otherwise I'll make a mess later, and that guy will definitely start complaining" He said, pointing at Jihoon, who was already making his way back toward the house.

That seemed to trigger the rest, one by one, people started getting up from the table, gathering plates, or simply mumbling 'good night' and wandering back inside. 

In the end, only three of them were still outside: Minghao, Junhui, and Jeonghan.

Minghao glanced over at Jeonghan as he finished the last sip of his beer, "Should we clean up this mess?" He suggested as he stood up, "At least let's throw this stuff away" He added, then gave a playful smack to his boyfriend, who had dozed off in the rocking chair.

Junhui startled awake at the hit, blinking, and Minghao looked down at him, "Come on, help us clean up" He said. 

Junhui rubbed the back of his neck, "Yeah, yeah, alright" He mumbled as he slowly stood.

Jeonghan let out a soft laugh, "If you guys are tired, go to sleep, I can take care of this" He offered. 

Minghao frowned a little, "No way, let's just toss the trash, and we can clean the rest tomorrow" He suggested.

But Jeonghan insisted, "No, really, you look tired, and Jun is basically dead" He said, glancing at the boy who was rubbing his face in a sleepy daze, "I'm not sleepy at all, I can handle this myself, it won't take long" He explained.

Minghao looked him up and down, and honestly, there were no signs that Jeonghan was tired at all. "Still having that sleep problem?" He asked quietly. 

The smile on Jeonghan's face faded slightly before he nodded, "Yeah, more or less".

Minghao let out a small sigh and glanced at his boyfriend, then back at Jeonghan, "If you're sure... Alright".

Jeonghan nodded, "Don't worry, go get some rest".

Junhui, though clearly still unsure, gave a small nod, "Goodnight" Minghao followed with his own, and Jeonghan gave them a small wave as he watched them disappear into the house.

One by one, the lights from the rooms inside began to turn off, casting the home back into the darkness.

As expected, it took Jeonghan less than ten minutes to throw everything away. Most of it had been plastic plates, and the rest were bowls they'd wash the next day. He brought the last few things into the house and then locked the front door behind him.

He headed to his room to change clothes, then went to the bathroom to do his routine, taking his time now that the house had gone completely quiet. Almost everyone was asleep, and the stillness didn't bother him. Jeonghan had always been used to this kind of silence.

By now, on the nights when he couldn't sleep, he had found things to keep himself busy. Sometimes he smoked, sometimes he wandered outside the house. 

The darkness or the night had never really scared him, he was used to it, even to the worst possibilities, it had happened that he ran into some strange people near his apartment, but he'd gotten so used to it that it barely registered anymore. 

Still, this wasn't his neighborhood, and Junhui had advised him not to go wandering around. And also, sometimes he just watched random YouTube videos instead.

When he came out of the bathroom, he went back to his room and grabbed his pack of cigarettes, along with his lighter. There was a small balcony on the second floor, so he decided to go there. 

He slid open the door quietly and stepped out. There was a chair and a small table, so he settled down.

Lighting his cigarette, he brought it to his lips and took a slow first drag. A cool breeze brushed past, and it felt good. It was one of those calm nights where everything felt still, and smoking in that silence was one of the things he loved most about being awake when the world was asleep.

But he still hated it. He hated not being able to sleep normally. He hated having to rely on pills to knock himself out, so he almost never took them. He preferred staying awake, or forcing himself to sleep. But maybe both were just equally useless, equally awful options.

Jeonghan brought the cigarette back to his lips, but nearly dropped it when the sudden flapping of wings echoed through the air, carried clearly to the balcony.

His eyes followed the owl as it darted through the trees, its flight swift, almost frantic. Odd. It would've stayed perched all night if something hadn't startled it.

He let it go and continued smoking for another couple of minutes, his body relaxed but his senses, sharper than before, starting to notice the quiet around him. Too quiet. At first, he thought the faint rustle he heard was just the wind. But there wasn't any.

The leaves moved subtly, only in one specific part of the woods, the denser part, the darker side of the tree line. Jeonghan's eyes narrowed as he stood up and leaned slightly on the balcony railing, trying to get a better look.

That's when he heard it.

A sound, light but sharp, like a voice, though blurred by distance and texture. It didn't carry words clearly, but it was unmistakably human. 

The tone was off, too high or too smooth, he couldn't decide. It gave him the impression of something trying to sound human.

He leaned in a little more, the cigarette between his fingers slowly burning down as he held his breath. Another sound, a whisper, maybe. A name? A word? It was gone too quickly.

Then the branches moved again, harder this time, as if something was weaving its way through them with careful, deliberate weight.

Then something slapped the glass door behind him.

Hard. Fast. The sound snapped the quiet in two like lightning.

Jeonghan spun around so quickly he hit his knee on the chair. His heart hammered in his chest, the cigarette nearly falling from his hand.

On the other side of the glass, Seungcheol stood with his palm still pressed to the door, eyes squinting against the dark, clearly half-asleep.

"What the fuck are you doing out here?" He muttered, voice low and gravelly, like he hadn't fully woken up yet, and then walked out, standing some steps away from his friend.

Jeonghan stared at him, still trying to calm his breathing. He wiped his hand across his face, dragging a laugh out of his chest, even if his stomach was still clenched, "Don't do that, Jesus-" He exhaled, trying to sound annoyed, "You scared the shit out of me".

Seungcheol blinked, "You're the one standing out here alone in the dark" He said, yawning, "That's creepy".

Still, Jeonghan let out a quiet sigh of relief, it was just Seungcheol.

He wasn't someone who got scared that easily. Maybe it was just the setting, the way the dark clung to the trees out there, that made everything feel more unsettling than it actually was. That place, that forgotten patch of forest, it had a strange weight to it, and Jeonghan figured it was probably that, and nothing more, that had gotten to his nerves. 

Whatever he'd heard, it was likely just some animal.

Seungcheol glanced at the small table beside the chair and picked up the pack of cigarettes, "Mind if I join you?" He asked.

Jeonghan nodded silently, crushing the rest of his own cigarette against the railing.

Seungcheol handed him a new one and took one for himself, lighting it with a slow flick of his thumb, "Can't sleep?" He asked, holding out the lighter.

Jeonghan took it and lit up quickly, exhaling as he leaned back, "Didn't even try" He replied casually, like it wasn't worth thinking about.

Seungcheol leaned back against the railing, not saying anything.

Silence settled again, and this time Jeonghan didn't hear anything unusual from the forest. No cracking branches, no voices. Just quiet.

Then, out of nowhere, Seungcheol's voice broke through it again, "How long's it been since you last slept?"

The question pulled Jeonghan right back into the moment. He glanced at him, then shrugged as he let the smoke slip from his lips, "A few days" He murmured.

"Exactly how many?" Seungcheol pressed gently.

Jeonghan stared at the cigarette burning between his fingers for a second and sighed, "Three, maybe?" He said, knowing full well it was exactly three, but not wanting Seungcheol to know just how clearly he remembered.

Seungcheol furrowed his brow, "Jeonghan, okay, no" He muttered, flicking the ash off his cigarette with a sharp motion, "I know how you are, but come on, three days? If you keep this up, you're gonna pass out eventually, it's just how it works" He added, his voice waking up slightly, as if the concern had shaken off some of his drowsines.

Jeonghan looked away. He knew Seungcheol was right.

Seungcheol spoke again, "You have the sleeping pills with you?" He asked.

It took Jeonghan a second before he replied, "Yeah, but..." He didn't finish the sentence and fell silent.

Seungcheol crushed the end of his cigarette against the railing, "Jeonghan, take them, you have to get some sleep somehow".

Normally, Jeonghan would've gotten annoyed if someone spoke to him like that, if it weren't for the fact that he knew Seungcheol was absolutely right.

Seungcheol sighed and gently reached out, brushing his fingers against Jeonghan's cheek, not in any dramatic way, but something close to comfort, "I'm heading back to bed, please... Try to do the same" He said softly, before sliding the door open and stepping back inside the house.

Jeonghan finished his cigarette, stubbing it out in the ashtray on the little table. Then, after a second of hesitation, he stepped inside too.

Truthfully, he could feel it, his body was giving out. He really needed rest.

Once in his room, he shut the door behind him and let out a breath as he crouched down next to his bag. He rummaged through it until he found the pouch where he kept his meds, and pulled out the familiar packet of sleeping pills.

He stared at them for a moment. He hated them, but that night, he forced himself.

He swallowed one with a few sips of water from the bottle on his nightstand. The effects wouldn't kick in right away, he knew that, but he crawled into bed anyway.

Lying on his side, he let his head sink into the pillow, taking slow, deep breaths, his body gradually relaxing, the weight of exhaustion finally allowed to settle in.

And eventually, Jeonghan drifted off.

Chapter Text

It was morning. From outside, the sounds of nature filtered in, birds, a soft breeze, the occasional rustle of leaves. 

Hansol stepped out of the bathroom, absently scratching the back of his neck.

He made his way into the living room and glanced at the clock on the wall, nine am.
Considering they were on vacation, it was still early for most of them to be awake. But Hansol was honestly just hungry.

He headed into the kitchen. A few dirty bowls were still piled by the sink, clearly left from the night before. That wasn't his job, but someone must have decided to 'leave it for the morning'.

Hansol opened the fridge, there were a few leftovers from the night before. He pulled out a few side dishes, put on some rice that would be enough for everyone, and started cracking eggs.

About fifteen minutes passed when a yawn caught his attention. He turned and saw Seungkwan shuffle into the kitchen, rubbing at one eye. "'Morning" He mumbled, still half-asleep. 

Hansol gave a small nod, not taking his eyes off the food.

"You're cooking?" Seungkwan asked, "Good, I'm starving" Without waiting, he stepped closer to help, maybe grabbing some bowls from a counter.

Hansol glanced over, "You're awake enough to be useful?"

Seungkwan gave a short, tired laugh, "Yeah, I washed my face, I'm good now".

Hansol smiled softly, and the two of them got to work.

One by one, the rest of the boys started appearing downstairs. Some of them wandered sleepily into the kitchen, others moved toward the back to set up the table outside, since the weather was especially nice that morning.

Once everything was ready, they all carried the food out and settled around the table. The air was warm, and the conversation slowly picked up as they ate.

Joshua had just taken a bite of food when he paused, his eyes scanning the table, "Where's Jeonghan?" He asked, brows slightly furrowed.

That seemed to catch the others' attention, and pretty quickly, they all realized the headcount didn't add up.

"He's not here" Chan confirmed, as if it wasn't already obvious.

Joshua put down his plate and stood up, "Maybe he's in the bathroom, I'll go check" He said, heading toward the stairs.

He stepped back into the house, first checking the downstairs bathroom, empty, then quietly going upstairs.

Seungcheol had come in behind him, not exactly following, more like heading in just to grab his hoodie, and Joshua found himself pausing in front of Jeonghan's bedroom door.

"If I don't knock, he's gonna be pissed, right?" He asked, just as Seungcheol passed behind him.

The older one shrugged, "You know how he is" He said simply, disappearing into his own room.

Joshua knocked a couple of times. No answer, so he slowly opened the door.

The room was completely dark, only a faint sliver of light sneaking in through the blinds.

He stepped inside, just a little. Jeonghan was in bed, and from what Joshua could tell, he looked like he was in a deep sleep.

He debated waking him, but knowing Jeonghan and his long-standing struggle with sleep, maybe it was best to leave him sleep.

Joshua quietly backed out and closed the door behind him. 

Just then, Seungcheol stepped out of his room, hoodie in hand, "So?" He asked, brushing past Joshua on his way out.

Joshua shrugged, "He's asleep" He replied, starting down the stairs.

Seungcheol nodded, following, "Pretty sure he took his sleeping pills last night" He said as they walked side by side, "I caught him out on the balcony when I was going to the bathroom, he said he hadn't slept in three days".

Joshua raised his eyebrows, though he didn't exactly look surprised, "I don't get why he keeps refusing to take the sleeping pills, he told me a bunch of times that natural remedies don't work, and forcing it doesn't help either" He explained.

Seungcheol answered without missing a beat, "It's because he feels like he's drugging himself with that stuff".

Joshua let out a sigh, "No yeah, I know that's how he sees it, but if he doesn't take them at least some nights, it's just gonna mess him up even more" He replied, pulling the front door open and stepping outside first.

They went back to eating and eventually finished breakfast together, cleaning up afterward with little effort since most of them had helped.

A few hours passed, and it was close to noon.

Some of the boys started getting ready to head into the village to pick up a few things they were missing at the supermarket. Mingyu had volunteered to drive, so they were going to take his car. Seungcheol joined him, along with Soonyoung and Jihoon.

Despite the time that had passed, there was still no sign of Jeonghan.

While rummaging through the house looking for some bags to carry the groceries in, Mingyu spotted Seungcheol walking by.

"Oh, Cheol, why don't we bring one more person?" He suggested, glancing over his shoulder, "Might be faster if we split up to grab everything".

Seungcheol nodded, "Yeah, good idea, who should we take?"

Mingyu thought for a moment, "If Jeonghan's up for it" He muttered under his breath, still digging through a drawer Minghao had sworn the bags were in.

Seungcheol considered it for a second, then turned and headed toward Jeonghan's room. It had been a few hours already. Sure, he needed the rest, but by now, he should've been awake.

He went up the stairs and knocked a couple of times. No answer, so he opened the door.

Jeonghan was lying on his side, facing the wall, his body still and quiet under the blanket.

Seungcheol hesitated.

He looked serene, so much so that Seungcheol found himself pausing in the doorway, thinking for a second that maybe he didn't want to wake him after all. He looked kind of cute like that, and more importantly, he was resting.

Despite those thoughts, he stepped closer.

He called his name twice, then again, a little louder, until he leaned in and gently shook him, "Jeonghan, wake up" He murmured, this time giving his shoulder a firmer nudge.

The blond stirred, slowly blinking his eyes open. He squinted up at Seungcheol, brow furrowed, his voice heavy with sleep, "What?" He mumbled, groggy.

"Me and a few of the others are about to head into town for groceries" Seungcheol explained, keeping his voice low, "We thought maybe you'd want to come".

Jeonghan pushed himself up slightly, shifting the blankets off his body, "What time is it?" He asked, confused, running a hand through his messy hair.

Seungcheol glanced down at his watch, "Almost noon".

Jeonghan's expression changed completely, "Noon?" He blurted, standing up abruptly, "Why the hell didn't anyone wake me up?"

Seungcheol watched him move across the room, rummaging through his suitcase, probably looking for something to wear.

"Joshua came by earlier, he said you were totally asleep, so he let you sleep".

Jeonghan groaned in frustration, "I didn't mean to sleep this long, you guys should've just woken me up" He muttered, clearly annoyed but already pulling together what he needed, "Whatever, I'm coming anyway" He added, heading out of the room with a change of clothes in hand.

Seungcheol stepped out of the room, quietly closing the door behind him, then started making his way down the stairs.

In the living room, Mingyu was still rummaging through a cabinet. When he saw him, he turned around immediately, "He coming?" He asked.

Seungcheol nodded slightly, "Yeah, he's coming, he just woke up though, was kind of confused about the time".

From the kitchen, Jihoon glanced over, wiping his hands with a towel, "I bet he didn't even realize how long he was out, those sleeping pills hit hard".

Soonyoung, sitting on the arm of the couch with a banana half-eaten in his hand, chimed in, "Yeah, no wonder he hates taking them, they knock you out, it's like you wake up and half the day's gone".

Seungcheol sighed as he walked toward the entryway, grabbing his shoes, "He was pissed no one woke him up, he said we should've just done it anyway".

Mingyu shrugged, finally pulling out the reusable bags from the cabinet, "I mean, can't blame him, probably feels like he lost a whole morning".

"Alright" Seungcheol said, standing straight, "Let's go out".

While they were organizing things in the car trunk, Jeonghan stepped out of the house and quickly made his way down the stairs to join the rest of the group.

"Oh, there you are" Mingyu said, "Come on, let's go".

And with that, everyone got into the car. Jeonghan seemed calm, thankfully, maybe he had just been a little irritated earlier, which was understandable.

The group arrived at the store after about fifteen minutes and started picking up what they needed. 

The boys took their time but eventually finished shopping fairly quickly. They bought a lot, but luckily there were enough of them to split the load. 

Once they got back home, they all helped put the groceries away.

Seungcheol had considered apologizing to Jeonghan for what had happened earlier, maybe Joshua should've done the same, but things seemed to have settled down, and digging it all up again didn't feel necessary. Sometimes, it was just better to leave things where they were.

By the time they returned, some of the others had already started preparing lunch, and they all ended up eating together at the table. 

Afterward, Hansol and Seungkwan were stuck with cleanup duty, along with Jihoon and Seokmin.

A little later, Minghao suggested heading down through the woods to check out the lake, the one they planned on visiting in the coming days when the weather would get really hot. 

Only Chan, Seungcheol, Jeonghan, Mingyu, and Junhui were up for it. The rest stayed behind, some of them, like Soonyoung and Wonwoo, had even passed out on the living room couch.

The small group started their hike through the forest. What looked like a short walk turned out to be at least twenty minutes long. 

After just ten minutes, everyone was already getting tired, not because of the distance, but because there wasn't really a trail. They had to climb over fallen trees, step around rocks, and push through overgrown brush.

For some reason, Joshua and Seungcheol ended up trailing a little behind the others.

Seungcheol, who had been lost in thought for a while, suddenly cleared his throat, "So, Josh" He mumbled. Joshua turned to glance at him, walking just a few steps ahead, "I've been meaning to ask you something... You and Seokmin went to Itaewon the other night, right?"

Joshua didn't answer right away, "Did he tell you? Or was it Jihoon?"

"Jihoon" Seungcheol replied, "You were basically passed out in the car, so he told us why you were like that".

Joshua let out a short laugh, "Why can't anyone around here mind their own business?" He muttered under his breath, but loud enough to be heard.

Seungcheol slowed down, as if debating whether to keep going with the conversation. But he was already in it, "Alright, I'll just say it straight... You and Seokmin, are you seeing each other? And I don't mean just as friends".

Joshua stopped walking and turned toward him, "What do you mean?" He asked, eyes narrowing just slightly.

"I mean..." Seungcheol hesitated, "Do you like each other?"

Joshua stood still for a second, then cleared his throat, "No".

Seungcheol raised an eyebrow, "No?"

Joshua tried to hold eye contact with Seungcheol, but it turned out to be harder than he expected. Eventually, he looked away, "We're just hanging out, it's like if I went out with you, or Mingyu, or Seungkwan one night" He said, "There's nothing weird about it".

Seungcheol crossed his arms, "I never said it was weird, I was just asking" He replied calmly, "It's just that... You always go out with him, just the two of you. You don't really do that with me or the others, not that often, at least, and when we do hang out, we stick around town. You two went all the way to Itaewon, that's a different thing".

Joshua let out that kind of tired, frustrated breath, "I don't get why you're all so hung up on the Itaewon thing, we just ended up there" He said, then added, "And anyway, why do you even care?" His tone was starting to get sharper.

A heavy silence fell between them. By now, the sound of the others' footsteps had faded completely.

Seungcheol sighed, sounding almost drained, and started walking again, "Ask yourself the question, and give yourself an answer" He muttered.

Joshua stood frozen for a moment, watching his friend walk ahead. Then he caught up, speeding up his pace, "Hey- What's that supposed to mean?" He asked, sounding genuinely worried now.

Seungcheol kept walking, "Come on, Josh, you've seen it yourself, pretty much all of us noticed it. There's clearly something going on between you and Seokmin".

Another silence followed. Joshua looked caught somewhere between total embarrassment and genuine confusion.

He exhaled slowly, "We're not seeing each other, we're not together, we're just hanging out" He explained, "I mean... I think he likes me, and I like him too, but, there hasn't really been a moment to talk about it".

Seungcheol didn't look surprised at all. He nodded, "So? The right moment will come eventually".

Joshua nodded back. That was the end of it.

Maybe it was because he just didn't want to talk about it any further, and the fact that Seungcheol stopped pushing made it easier.

They found their way back to the trail and rejoined the others, and finally, after a long walk, they arrived at the lake.

The group eventually split off, more or less just settling into scattered spots around the lake.

Mingyu had taken out his camera and was trying to get some decent shots of the scenery, while Junhui helped adjust angles and lighting with Minghao. The rest of them sat or lounged on the larger rocks.

Seungcheol looked around and spotted Jeonghan sitting near the water, perched on one of the smooth boulders by the shoreline.

Seungcheol walked over slowly and sat beside him without a word. Jeonghan flicked his eyes toward him briefly, then looked back at the lake.

"Pretty view" Seungcheol said after a moment, voice casual. 

Jeonghan gave a small nod, "Yeah, peaceful".

Another short pause.

"You've been working a lot, right?" Seungcheol asked, glancing over.

"Always" Jeonghan said with a small, breathy laugh, "The restaurant's gearing up for the summer crowd. More tastings, more pressure, more people pretending they know what they're drinking".

Seungcheol smiled, "So the usual".

Jeonghan shook his head, amused, "Pretty much... Last week a guy came in, acting all high and mighty. He started telling me the Merlot was too young".

Seungcheol raised an eyebrow, "And?"

"It was a 2008".

For a moment Seungcheol tried to hold it in, then burst out laughing. Jeonghan laughed with him, and the silence that followed felt lighter, easier to share.

"Sometimes I worry about overthinking too much, but I mean, that's part of me by now, especially at night" Jeonghan made a short pause and huffed a laugh, "But you know, it's funny, sometimes I just suddenly remeber about things that happened years and years ago, and I start thinking about that".

"I get that" Seungcheol said.

They sat like that for a moment longer, looking out over the lake, neither of them feeling the need to say anything else.

*

The boys who had gone down to the lake had been back for a while now, and everyone was gathered outside having dinner together.

The sky was still a little light, though in about half an hour it would probably be completely dark.

Some were sipping beers, while Soonyoung, Jeonghan, and Seungkwan were messing around with a basketball, making enough noise that everyone was now watching them like they were actually playing in a real game.

Mingyu brought the beer to his lips, his face a little flushed, which didn't go unnoticed by Wonwoo, "You're not drunk, are you?" He asked.

Mingyu frowned as he took another satisfying sip, "Come on, you think I get drunk off three beers? Give me a break".

Wonwoo glanced over at their other friends, and they exchanged a knowing look.

He then casually moved the next can Mingyu had lined up for himself out of reach, and the moment Mingyu noticed, he reached out for it, "No, Hyung, come on, please, give it back" He whined, stretching his arm, but Wonwoo kept him with one hand to his chest, pushing him back, "Nah, I think you're already on your way".

Minghao chuckled, "Take out the 'I think', he doesn't even notice when he downs a whole crate by himself".

Mingyu shot him a glare, "Look at yourself, you're not doing much better".

Luckily, the noise from the ongoing basketball chaos was enough to draw everyone's attention back to the game, and the rest of them turned their focus to the players, effectively ending the pointless bickering.

And just like that, the evening came to an end. 

Some of the boys had fallen asleep right at the table, Mingyu and Seokmin, for example, so the others had to take care of them and help them to their rooms.

Jeonghan noticed how even the two friends he'd been playing basketball with were starting to crash, until eventually they gave up and went to bed.

And once again, Jeonghan was alone that night.

He found himself back on the balcony later, smoking alone. The only real company he had was the owl, there was one perched on a tree just a short distance from the house, staring in his direction.

Jeonghan wasn't sure if it was the same one he'd seen the night before, but it definitely looked like the same species. And just like a déjà vu, the owl suddenly took off, its wings cutting through the quiet with a sharp rustle that echoed through the woods.

Jeonghan started to think maybe there really was some kind of wild animal out there.

He brought the cigarette to his lips again, then paused when he heard a high-pitched noise coming from the forest. A moment later, a voice, soft, barely audible, murmuring words he couldn't quite make out.

Jeonghan strained to listen, narrowing his eyes, trying to focus. That's when he saw it: a flicker of light in the distance between the trees. It looked too intentional to be anything natural.

Could it be someone in trouble? Maybe someone from the nearby village had gotten lost?

Without thinking twice, he dropped the cigarette and stepped off the balcony. He opened the front door and made his way down the wooden steps with quiet urgency.

Soon, he was standing at the edge of the woods. 

He looked around, nothing. No sound, no light. 

Maybe he had imagined it. But still, he took a few cautious steps forward, until he was standing at the threshold of the trees, where the forest seemed to swallow the moonlight.

The silence was deeper than before, the kind that makes your skin itch.

That's when he saw them, eyes. 

Two glowing orbs reflecting the dim light, just a little below his own eye level. For a second, he thought he saw his own reflection staring back at him.

Then, before he could react, something heavy lunged out of the darkness.

A massive dog slammed into him, knocking him to the ground. 

Jeonghan barely had time to throw his arm up to shield his face. The dog, no, it looked almost like a wolf, was barking right in his face, teeth bared but not biting, just barking, loud and aggressive.

Jeonghan froze. The animal was huge. He didn't move a muscle, fearing that any sudden motion might push it to attack.

Then, thankfully, a sharp voice cut through the chaos.

"Jangsuni! Leave him! Off him, now!" An old man's voice from behind.

The sound of something metallic clanked, the old man had tapped the side of the dog with his hunting rifle. Not hard, but just enough to make it back off with a short whimper.

Jeonghan gasped, trying to catch his breath. 

He looked up and saw the man, elderly, rough-looking, holding a rifle and adjusting the wide-brimmed hat on his head.

"What the hell are you doing out here this late, boy? I thought you were a wild animal trying to get to us" He said gruffly, now petting the dog's head as it continued to growl under its breath.

Jeonghan stayed quiet for a second, then slowly pushed himself off the ground, "I thought I heard something... Someone maybe, that's why I came to check" Jeonghan answered, his voice slightly shaky.

"You lost or something?" The old man asked.

Jeonghan shook his head, "No, I'm here on vacation with some friends. We're staying in that house" He said, pointing behind him toward the house, "And why are you hunting this late at night?" Jeonghan added, clearly confused by the whole situation.

The old man shot him a look and replied dryly, "Why are you awake and standing near the woods in the middle of the night?"

Jeonghan didn't answer immediately. He cleared his throat and tried to keep his voice steady, "I told you, I heard something weird, I just wanted to make sure nothing was wrong".

The man frowned, his eyes narrowing, "Yeah, well... That's normal out here, don't let it mess with your head. You'll hear all sorts of strange things in these woods, every single night".

Jeonghan, noticing that the man seemed to be local, decided to ask a few questions, "What are those sounds, then? I heard them last night too" He explained.

The man shrugged, "I don't know, no one really does. You just hear them, that's all. Best to leave it alone" He replied, taking a step back, "Well, go back inside" He added.

Jeonghan made his way back into the house, still a little shaken. His white shirt was stained with dirt, marked by the paw prints of the dog.

He walked slowly up the stairs and through the house, careful not to make any noise, afraid he might wake someone.

He quickly reached his room and closed the door behind him. Even though he probably wouldn't sleep, he had no intention of taking any more sleeping pills. He'd stay awake, just like that.

≺≻

Jeonghan sighed as he watched the eggs sizzle in the pan. He gave them a quick stir to make sure they weren't burning before checking if the rice was ready.

He'd been up all night, and now that it was past ten, he figured it was a good idea to cook something for himself and the others.

Out of nowhere, he heard the soft shuffle of slippers not far behind him, and Seungkwan walked into the kitchen, "Wow, you're cooking?" He asked, stepping closer and wrapping his arms around Jeonghan from behind, "Need a hand?" He added, his voice tired.

Jeonghan smiled, "You sound exhausted".

Seungkwan gave a small nod, resting his cheek against Jeonghan's back, "I am, honestly" He mumbled, before pulling away to grab the plates for breakfast.

The two of them, along with Chan, who joined a few minutes later, brought the food to the table outside.

Within a few minutes, everybody were all sitting at the table, eating breakfast together, everyone except Joshua, who seemed to prefer sleeping in after getting drunk the night before.

The table was mostly quiet, with only a few small conversations happening here and there, but nothing more, everyone still looked tired.

Jeonghan stared at his plate, chewing slowly on some bean sprouts. He didn't have much of an appetite, but he figured it was better to eat something at that hour.

"Jeonghan, you okay?" Wonwoo's voice pulled the blonde out of his thoughts, and he looked up right away, "Yeah... Why?" He asked.

Wonwoo shrugged, "I dunno, you look a little pale" He spoke while lifting a piece of meat with his chopsticks.

Jeonghan snapped back a little, "Oh, no, I'm fine, really, I was just kinda spacing out".

Jeonghan tried to act normal, he didn't want anyone to notice that something was off, especially not what had happened the night before. So, he started talking like he usually did, slipping back into his usual tone.

*

A few hours passed, and after lunch, some of the guys made plans to go fishing. Some, like Joshua, decided to skip it, he found the whole thing a bit unethical, especially since he was vegetarian, and others just didn't feel like going.

The ones who ended up going were Junhui, Minghao, Jeonghan, Seungcheol, Chan, and Hansol.

The trail was rough, just like the day before, and now they were also carrying fishing rods and buckets, for bait and whatever they managed to catch. 

Jeonghan walked in silence, partly because of the effort, and partly because he was focused, his eyes scanning the surroundings.

No strange noises today. Maybe those things only happened at night? He should've asked that man more questions.

They eventually made it to the lake and found a good spot to settle down and fish.

Jeonghan didn't hear anything unusual anymore, everything seemed fine. Maybe last night he'd just overthought some random forest sounds.

Suddenly, Seungcheol tapped him on the shoulder, "Caught anything?" He asked.

Jeonghan shook his head, "Nothing yet, you?"

"I'm not really fishing" Seungcheol replied, sitting down next to him, "I'm just helping out the others, Jun caught one, then nothing after that".

They both sat in silence as Jeonghan kept his eyes on the rod.

The conversation drifted to other topics, and they stayed out there for hours. By the time they headed back to the house, the sun was already low in the sky, and they returned with quite the haul.

The boys walked in silence, all scattered along the path, some ahead, others lagging behind.

Minghao was helping his boyfriend carry the bucket of fish, since it was a bit too heavy, and they walked side by side.

Even though Junhui was deep in his own thoughts, the sound of a voice, faint and unclear, snapped him out of it.

"What?" He asked, turning slightly.

Minghao raised an eyebrow, "What?"

Junhui furrowed his brows, "I didn't catch what you just said".

Minghao was quiet for a moment, "I didn't say anything".

"Oh" Junhui murmured, "I thought I heard a voice" He said as he glanced around, careful where he placed his feet.

"You imagined it" Minghao replied casually.

The boys finally reached the house, and Wonwoo and Mingyu turned their attention to the buckets Minghao and Junhui were carrying.

"Whoa, how many fish did you guys catch?" Mingyu asked, surprised, dropping the Uno cards he'd been playing with. Wonwoo followed him over to take a look at the catch.

Junhui set the bucket down, and so did his boyfriend, "We caught a decent amount, we're eating this tonight, right?" Minghao suggested.

Mingyu immediately started talking about dinner plans, and Wonwoo listened intently while Junhui bent slightly to catch his breath.

"Look".

Junhui lifted his head the moment he heard the voice and looked around, "What?" He asked, then turned toward Minghao.

His boyfriend frowned, "What's wrong?" 

Junhui paused, "You didn't say anything?"

Minghao shook his head.

Junhui ran a hand through his hair, his head was warm, maybe from all the time in the sun, "Guess I'm just tired" He muttered. 

"Definitely" Minghao replied, giving him a light pat on the back, "Let's go inside, maybe you need some water".

Junhui followed him into the house and dropped down on the couch, realizing he didn't actually feel bad. Sure, he was feeling hot, but it wasn't that serious. 

Minghao returned after a few seconds, handing him a cold bottle of water. Junhui took a few sips and placed it on the table between the couches.

"Rest a bit, we can start cooking later, it's still early" Minghao said.

"Yeah, okay, I'll just stay here for a bit" Junhui replied.

Minghao looked at him for a moment before leaning in to kiss the top of his head, "If you need me, just call" He said before walking out of the room.

Strange. Minghao wasn't usually that affectionate. In fact, there wasn't all that much physical contact between them. They were together and loved each other, but closeness wasn't something they often expressed, aside from sex, where it was basically the only time they were physically close.

Still, Junhui stretched out, deciding that a little rest really wouldn't hurt.

Everything moved along pretty quickly after that. Mingyu and Chan took charge of cleaning and preparing the fish in the kitchen. The others wandered around, chatting or helping out in small ways.

When dinner was finally ready, they moved outside and ate. As the sun dipped low behind the trees, light conversation and laughter filled the space once again.

And by now, as if it had become routine, everyone had gone back to their rooms. Strangely, some stayed up later than usual, it was almost one in the morning when Mingyu, Hansol, and Chan finally decided to go to sleep.

Jeonghan had showered and changed clothes, and now, with his pack of cigarettes and lighter, he headed to the balcony.

He lit the first cigarette and smoked it quickly. Then, just as he was lighting a second one, he heard the flapping of an owl's wings nearby. 

He didn't pay much attention and brought the cigarette to his lips.

He took a few drags, noticing a faint light among the trees, but, remembering what the man had told him the night before, he ignored it.

The second cigarette was almost done. 

The air was getting strangely cold, and Jeonghan thought it was probably better to head back under the covers. He flicked away the cigarette and stood up. 

Calmly, he slipped the lighter into his pocket, but just as he reached for the pack of cigarettes, his blood ran cold.

A scream came from the forest, a woman's scream, probably elderly judging by the voice, shouting for help.

Jeonghan's eyes shot toward the woods. The trees at the far edge seemed to move. The branches swayed unnaturally.

He froze. For the first time, something in the night truly terrified him.

It was a woman. She sounded terrified. She was probably old, she wouldn't be able to defend herself.

He swallowed hard. Then came the second scream. 

This time, he didn't hesitate. He opened the door and hurried downstairs. In his rush, he didn't even bother looking for his shoes, he just bolted outside barefoot.

He ran straight toward the forest and, without thinking twice, stepped into it, flashlight on his phone guiding his way. He moved fast toward where he thought the scream had come from.

He ran for a while, but once he got deep into the woods, everything was still. 

No sounds. No lights. Nothing strange. Just silence.

Jeonghan stopped, trying to catch his breath, "Is anyone there?!" He shouted.

No answer.

"Is anyone there?" He asked again, his voice slightly quieter this time.

Still nothing.

He was sure he had heard a scream, but now it was completely quiet. He took one step back, then another.

Eventually, he turned around and began walking back toward the house.

It was dark, but as long as he kept walking straight, he figured he'd make it out. His feet were also hurting, he must have stepped on a sharp branch or something. It wasn't hard to walk, but anyway, it kind of hurted.

Then something icy wrapped around his ankle. He didn't even have time to look.

Suddenly, he was yanked to the ground, hard. His back slammed against roots and stones. The air left his lungs.

He tried to scream but only managed a strangled gasp.

Something was pulling him backward into the woods. Something fast.

His phone flew from his hand, and everything went black.

The grip on his ankle was so tight, he felt something crack. A sharp rock beneath him sliced his leg open, hot blood rushed down his calf, mixing with the cold damp soil.

He kicked, screamed, clawed at the ground, but whatever had him was too strong. His nails tore into the dirt, his breath ragged.

He could hear it now, breathing. Not human, heavy, and wet, too close. It smelled like rotting leaves and something metallic, like old blood.

He thrashed harder, but hands, too many hands, wrapped around his wrists, his legs, dragging him.

His shirt clung to his skin, soaked, his pants too.

Water.

He was being dragged into something shallow but wide, like a swamp or a pool hidden in the forest.

His back scraped against roots underwater. He felt weeds coil around his arms like fingers.

Then something pressed against his face, cold. He couldn't breathe.

He kept his eyes shut tight, but when he opened them for just a second, he saw a face. Not quite human, elongated and pale.

Its eyes were black and sunken, its mouth impossibly wide, opening slowly without sound.

The moon shimmered across the surface of the water.

And then, darkness.

Chapter Text

Seungcheol stepped out of his room quietly, since Chan was still asleep. He headed toward the bathroom, but as he walked past Jeonghan's room, he noticed the door was open. 

Seungcheol raised an eyebrow, maybe, since he'd stayed up all night, Jeonghan was already awake somewhere in the house.

Jeonghan wasn't in the bathroom, so Seungcheol figured he might be downstairs.

He went down the stairs, but found no one, the bedroom doors were all closed, and yet, something seemed off. The front door was open. Slightly ajar, with the keys still hanging from the lock.

The blue hoodie Jeonghan had left on the coat rack the night before was gone.

Seungcheol looked around, was it possible he had already gone outside? It was still early.

He made his way to the bathroom again, this time noticing the door was closed, so he knocked a couple of times. No answer. He knocked again. Still nothing.

Without overthinking it, he slowly opened the door.

When he did, he saw Jeonghan standing in front of the mirror, tying his hair back with an elastic. Seungcheol nearly let out a sigh of relief, but then Jeonghan spoke.

"Did I say you could come in?" He asked, his voice slightly muffled by the hair tie held between his teeth as he pulled his hair into a ponytail.

Seungcheol cleared his throat and shrugged, "Sorry, I was just searching for you" He explained, his voice still groggy with sleep.

The blond furrowed his brows and looked at Seungcheol through the mirror, "For what?" He asked, sounding genuinely confused, carefully pulling every single strand of hair into the ponytail.

Then he looked at him, with a gaze that was just a little too strange.

Seungcheol was still too tired to notice, "No, it's just... I saw you weren't in your room, then the front door was open, so I was wondering where you were" He explained, voice still heavy with sleep.

Jeonghan turned around, finally looking him straight in the face, "I'm just getting ready".

There was a brief moment of silence, then Seungcheol ran a hand through his hair, "Well... Okay, should we eat something? It's early, the others probably still want to sleep".

Jeonghan's expression darkened slightly. This time, Seungcheol noticed, but whatever tension had formed was cut off by Jeonghan's calm response, "Alright. Just give me a second".

Seungcheol nodded and stepped out of the bathroom, gently closing the door behind him.

Seungcheol scratched the back of his neck as he walked into the kitchen, yawning from exhaustion. He opened the fridge, despite the grocery run just a few days before, most of the food was already gone. 

With a sigh, he grabbed a few ingredients: some leftover rice, a couple of eggs, and a bit of kimchi. He lit the stove and started making kimchi fried rice, hoping it would be enough to keep him going.

After a few minutes, Jeonghan finally stepped out of the bathroom and entered the kitchen.

"What are you doing?" He asked from behind, resting a hand on Seungcheol's shoulder and standing unusually close.

Seungcheol cleared his throat, "Just making some kimchi fried rice" He answered. His voice faltered slightly as he felt Jeonghan's hand slide from his shoulder to his waist, giving it a small pat.

"Maybe... I don't know, just grab whatever's in the fridge" Seungcheol added, trying to keep his tone light.

Jeonghan didn't move away, "What?" He asked, his voice low.

Seungcheol turned slightly, now paying more attention to him than to the pan in front of him, "The leftovers from last night" He clarified.

Jeonghan stood still, his expression momentarily blank, almost empty, like he was trying to make sense of the words. Then he raised his eyebrows, "Oh, right. The leftovers".

He slowly pulled his hand away from Seungcheol's waist and walked over to the fridge. His eyes moved aimlessly over the contents, even though the containers with the leftovers were hard to miss, lined up front and center, next to a couple of beer cans and a bottle of water.

Seungcheol left the stove for a moment and walked over beside him, "These" He said, pointing directly at the containers before returning to finish cooking.

Jeonghan took them out with an odd hesitation, his fingers stiff around the plastic edges.

They eventually brought their breakfast outside. The early air was still cool, the grass slightly damp with dew. Seungcheol set the plates down on the wooden table, along with two pairs of chopsticks.

As they sat, Seungcheol dug into his bowl of rice without hesitation. Jeonghan, on the other hand, barely touched his food. He stared at it for a while, then picked up the chopsticks in a way that looked... Wrong. 

His grip was clumsy, awkward, like someone who had only recently learned how to hold them. After fumbling with a piece of kimchi, he gave up, letting it slide back onto the plate. He forced a faint smile when Seungcheol glanced at him but didn't say much else.

Seungcheol raised an eyebrow but said nothing. Maybe Jeonghan wasn't feeling well. But still, something didn't sit right.

Seungcheol let it go, he wasn't fully awake himself, still groggy and half-asleep. The two of them finished eating, or rather, Seungcheol did. Jeonghan had barely touched his food, leaving most of it on the plate.

Seungcheol reached into the pocket of his sweatpants and pulled out a lighter and a pack of cigarettes. He set them on the table, took one for himself, and noticed immediately how Jeonghan's eyes locked onto the cigarette between his lips.

"You want one?" Seungcheol asked as he lit it.

The blonde hesitated, "Yeah, okay" He muttered, and Seungcheol handed him one without question.

He turned his gaze for just a second, distracted by the flicker of the lighter. When he looked back, Jeonghan was holding the cigarette between his lips, backwards.

"You're holding it the wrong way" Seungcheol pointed out.

Jeonghan glanced down and let out a soft, breathy laugh, "Oh, right, thanks" He murmured, flipping the cigarette around.

Seungcheol watched him closely. He took a drag, exhaling slowly, "Did you sleep at all last night?" He asked.

Jeonghan hadn't even lit his cigarette yet. It was as if he didn't really want to. Still, he kept it between his fingers, resting lightly against his lips. He eventually pulled it away and sighed, "More or less, I think" He said vaguely.

Seungcheol didn't say anything else. That explained it. Jeonghan was acting off because he hadn't slept properly, again. Mystery solved. He hadn't asked sooner, afraid it would come off as too nosy.

One by one, the others slowly began to wake up, and Jeonghan felt an odd pull to head back inside. He avoided crossing paths or making conversation with anyone, heading straight to his room instead.

He shut the door behind him and started rummaging through his suitcase. After a few moments, having practically torn the whole thing apart, he finally found a small pouch with medication inside. Sleeping pills. The kind he usually took to help him sleep.

He stared at them for a while, as if examining them closely, then put them away. He let out a quiet sigh before leaving the room again.

As he descended the stairs, he cleared his throat softly. Through the window, he could see most of the boys already sitting around the table. Maybe it was time to go back to them.

*

They had just finished eating, though once again, Jeonghan had barely touched his food, just a few bites of meat which, judging by his occasional expression, didn't seem to appeal to him all that much.

Some of the boys got up to clean things around the house, while others remained seated at the table in the shade. Then Mingyu found a soccer ball, and he, Seokmin, and Seungcheol began to kick it around.

Jeonghan followed the ball with his eyes, quietly observing. Nearby, Wonwoo and Chan were sitting not too far from him, both seemingly more focused on a game on their phones than anything else.

Mingyu passed the ball in Seokmin's direction, but despite stretching his leg, Seokmin couldn't stop it in time. The ball rolled quickly toward Jeonghan, eventually coming to a stop against his leg.

The blond looked down, his gaze lingering on the ball with a strange sort of interest.

"Hyung, the ball!" Seokmin called out.

Jeonghan seemed to snap out of it, nudging the ball back with a simple flick of his leg. It didn't look like he put much effort into it, and yet the ball sped cleanly back to Seokmin.

Mingyu grinned, "Jeonghan, come play with us" He called out, trying to coax him in, "Let's play together".

Jeonghan looked at his friends, all of them watching him, hopeful smiles on their faces. He cleared his throat quietly and stood up.

At first, Jeonghan was a bit clumsy. He jogged into the game slowly, unsure of his position, and missed the first pass that Mingyu sent his way. It bounced off his knee awkwardly.

"Come on, Hyung!" Mingyu laughed, jogging past him, "You used to be better than this".

"I haven't played in a while" Jeonghan muttered, adjusting the loose strands of his hair behind his ear, his breathing a little uneven from the warm sun overhead.

Seokmin passed him the ball again, this time more gently. Jeonghan took a few hesitant steps and returned the pass with slightly more confidence. His next move was cleaner. Then another. And another.

Bit by bit, he seemed to find a rhythm.

"Okay, okay! There he is" Seungcheol said, flashing him a grin, "Now you're back".

Jeonghan gave a crooked smile in return and suddenly darted forward, intercepting a pass between Seungcheol and Mingyu with surprising speed. His hair bounced freely as he ran, slightly damp at the edges from sweat.

"Whoa" Chan shouted from the sidelines, "Where did that come from?"

"I'm just trying a little harder" Jeonghan said casually, not even sounding out of breath.

They kept playing. Jeonghan was suddenly everywhere, stealing passes, shooting with intense accuracy. He was fast, precise, and his coordination looked too perfect to be real. The ball never slipped past him, and he moved like someone who had done this all his life, professionally.

Seungcheol watched him out of the corner of his eye, eyebrows furrowed slightly. Jeonghan was good, sure, but this was different. He was exceptional. Unnaturally so.

The game was heating up. Jeonghan looked sharp, almost too sharp, every motion controlled, fast, calculated.

Seungcheol tried to cut him off, stepping into his path just as Jeonghan made a sharp turn. But Jeonghan didn't stop in time. He crashed into him hard.

"Shit-!"

Seungcheol hit the ground with a thud, landing flat on his back, the breath knocked out of him.

Jeonghan stumbled, but didn't fall. He caught himself on his knees and stood directly over him, casting a shadow over Seungcheol's face.

For a second, neither of them moved.

"You alright down there?" Jeonghan asked, cocking his head with a half-smirk. His voice was lower than usual, playful, but with an edge.

Seungcheol blinked up at him, stunned, not just from the fall, but from how Jeonghan looked. The sun behind him lit the edges of his hair, his chest rose and fell with each breath, and his eyes had a strange kind of focus. His shirt clung to his skin, showing the line of his collarbones, and his hand was still resting on Seungcheol's stomach from trying to balance himself.

"You planning on helping me up?" Seungcheol muttered, a little breathless.

Jeonghan's grin grew wider, "No, I like you like this" He said.

Seungcheol stared.

Jeonghan held out a hand after a long pause, eyes never leaving his, "Come on, I'm joking".

Seungcheol hesitated a moment, then took it.

Jeonghan pulled him up easily, and for just a beat longer than necessary, didn't let go.

The two returned to the others, welcomed by the usual teasing and playful remarks.

Seungcheol tried to focus on the game, even though he still felt that odd flutter in his stomach, that chill running down his spine. What Jeonghan had said was still echoing in his ears. It was strange, but he liked it. 

Jeonghan seemed to be getting back normal despite his sleep problems. He was acting like the same person he had always been, dumb, but endearing.

The game continued for another twenty minutes, and the sun began to creep over the area where they were playing. 

At first, everything was fine, until Jeonghan lifted his gaze, staring at the sun peeking through the branches above. He looked at it for a moment before returning to the game, passing the ball quickly, but once the sun fully revealed itself, hot and glaring, his breathing began to change.

It quickened. Which was strange, his breathing had been perfectly steady until that moment.

The ball rolled out of bounds, and Jeonghan was the closest. He went to retrieve it, but his movements were noticeably slower. The energy he had before was fading, and his vision began to blur around the edges.

"Hyung, you good?" Chan's voice made Jeonghan snap his head toward him.

He tossed the ball back in their direction and turned away. "Gonna get some water" He muttered.

He made his way to the outdoor table where a bottle of cold water sat. Without hesitation, he twisted the cap off and started drinking straight from it, draining nearly the whole thing. It had been almost full, now barely anything remained.

Still, the heat on his body felt unbearable.

Jeonghan turned to the others who were still playing and called out, "I'm going inside, I'm tired".

The others stopped playing.

"Let's stop too, then" Mingyu said, stopping the ball with his foot.

The others agreed, and soon everyone was heading back inside.

Jeonghan slumped down on the couch, choosing the corner closest to the wall, the shadiest part of the room. His head leaned back against the top of the couch, tilted, exposing his neck to the slight breeze. 

His eyes fluttered shut, and his face twisted into a faint grimace. He felt like he might pass out, or just completely lose all strength.

"You okay?"

Seungcheol's voice pulled him back. Jeonghan turned his eyes toward him, still lying half-sunk into the couch, "Yeah, just hot" Jeonghan replied.

Seungcheol nodded, raising an eyebrow, "It's not that hot, though".

"It's the sun" Jeonghan said, shrugging faintly.

Seungcheol didn't press further. He still felt a little off around Jeonghan, unsure how to act after what had happened earlier. A part of him wanted to sit next to him. Another part told him to keep his distance, because he wasn't sure what the hell he was feeling.

So, for now, he said nothing.

*

"It's been years since I had my last marshmallow night" Seokmin said excitedly, his voice filled with genuine nostalgia.

"Same here, I think" Wonwoo replied, walking beside him with a bag of marshmallows in hand as they made their way down the steps into the garden, "Maybe... Back in middle school?"

Seokmin let out a short laugh, "No way, that long ago?"

"I swear" Wonwoo said, nodding, as they finally reached the spot where the others had already set up a campfire, not huge, but bright and steady. 

Minghao and Junhui came over carrying the last log and dropped it onto the pile, completing the circle so everyone had somewhere to sit.

They all took their places, sitting around the fire, the flickering light casting soft shadows over their faces. 

One by one, they grabbed marshmallows and stuck them on skewers, holding them over the flames. They laughed, joked, nudged each other, and told dumb stories, the kind that only made sense late at night with the sound of the fire crackling beside them.

Jeonghan bit into his marshmallow, chewing slowly as his eyes drifted toward the fire. At first, it was nothing, just a calm gaze. But then something shifted. 

His stare grew more intense, almost hollow, and a thin sheen of sweat began to form on his forehead. The heat from the fire, though not particularly close, felt overwhelming, like it was pressing directly against his skin. Still, he didn't took off his hoodie.

"Shit!"

Seokmin's voice suddenly broke through the air, pulling everyone's attention toward him. He jerked his arm back with a wince, his face twisted in pain.

"What happened?" Jihoon asked, concern threading through his voice.

"Shit, I burned myself" Seokmin muttered. He'd reached for the bag of marshmallows and, without noticing, had brought his arm too close to the flames.

Joshua stood up and took Seokmin by the arm, "Come on, let's go inside" He said, already walking him toward the house, "I'll take care of it" He added to the others with a glance.

Everyone watched the two disappear toward the house, then Soonyoung sighed, "He's such an idiot" He mumbled, shaking his head.

"Can't even take care of himself" Mingyu added with a small chuckle, and thankfully, the tension dissolved into laughter.

Meanwhile, Jeonghan hadn't moved. His eyes were still locked on the fire, wide and glassy. The heat felt unbearable now, like the flames were crawling up his arms, but even then. His skin prickled, his chest felt tight. His eyes rolled slitghly back, without warning, his body leaned sideways, slumping against Seungcheol, who sat right beside him.

"Jeonghan?" Seungcheol whispered, looking at him with concern. Jeonghan's eyes were closed.

Junhui, seated nearby, reached over to tap his shoulder, "Jeonghan" He called, more firmly.

Suddenly, Jeonghan's head snapped up. His eyes blinked open, wide, dazed, and he looked around at the others, all staring at him with quiet worry. He swallowed hard.

"I'm going inside for a minute" He said flatly, and stood up from the log. Without waiting for a reply, he walked away from the fire, heading toward the stairs and into the house.

He stumbled on the steps, landing on one knee with a dull thud, but he pushed himself back up right away. As soon as he stepped into the house, the heat that had clung to his skin outside began to fade. 

Still dizzy, he headed toward the bathroom, but paused when he heard voices from down the hall. It was Joshua and Seokmin.

He leaned slightly into the corridor, just far enough to peek inside without being seen. 

The two of them were seated on a small couch near the kitchen. Joshua was crouched forward a little, carefully tending to Seokmin's forearm. A small tube of ointment sat open beside them, along with a few cotton pads and a cold compress wrapped in a towel.

Joshua sighed as he grabbed a bandage, carefully wrapping it around Seokmin's burn, "Why are you never careful with what you do?" He asked.

Seokmin's face showed a mix of pain and regret, "I didn't even notice" He murmured.

Joshua tightened the bandage, and Seokmin let out a small groan. 

"Sorry, but if I don't do it this way, it'll definitely come loose as soon as you move your arm" Joshua explained.

Seokmin nodded, "It's okay" He said, "It's already a lot that you're helping me, I guess" Then he chuckled softly, "If it weren't for you, my arm would've been burnt to ashes".

Joshua couldn't help but smile as he looked at him, "Don't joke around, you were really close" He replied, lowering his gaze, and noticed Seokmin had taken his hand in his.

Jeonghan started walking toward the bathroom, still watching them from a distance. Just as he reached the door and was about to open it, he felt a light touch on his shoulder. He turned around quickly and found Seungkwan standing there.

"Everything alright, Hyung?" Seungkwan asked quietly.

Jeonghan's eyes darkened, sharp and cold like a blade as he stared at Seungkwan, "Yes".

Seungkwan swallowed, "I was just worried-"

Jeonghan cut him off, his voice low and venomous, "Then don't be, I'd rather you stay out of my way".

He pushed the bathroom door open roughly, stepping inside and slamming it shut behind him, leaving Seungkwan frozen in place, confused, and completely shut out.

Seungkwan stood in front of the door for a few moments, then let out a sigh as he turned back. He walked past Joshua and Seokmin without saying a word, neither of them seemed to have noticed anything, maybe too caught up in their own conversation. Quietly, he headed back outside.

As he walked toward the fire, Hansol looked up, still chewing on his marshmallow, "Hey, what did Jeonghan say? Is he okay?" He asked.

Seungkwan sat back down between Wonwoo and Mingyu and shrugged, "I don't know, he... Snapped at me, and closed the door in my face".

"What do you mean?" Hansol frowned, and confusion spread across the rest of the group.

"I just asked how he was, I told him I was worried, and he told me not to be, that he didn't need me to worry about him. He sounded... Angry" Seungkwan looked down at the ground.

The others exchanged a quick glance.

"That's weird" Junhui murmured, "He's been acting off all day".

Seungcheol looked at his friends, who were all clearly unsettled by Jeonghan's behavior. Then he spoke up, trying to ease the tension, "I think he's just nervous. Maybe because he knows we're always watching him, always worried about every little thing he does".

Everyone turned their attention to Seungcheol as he continued, "I mean, maybe the way we hover around makes him feel worse. Honestly, I think he's just on edge from not sleeping. This morning, when it was just the two of us, he seemed... Really off".

The group fell silent, each of them quietly considering Seungcheol's words. Maybe he was right. Maybe Jeonghan was just overwhelmed by all the concern constantly surrounding him.

Anyway, the boys put out the fire and began tidying up the garden a bit before heading back inside. Once they were in, everyone changed, and some had already locked themselves away in their rooms.

When Seungkwan stepped out of the bathroom, he ran into Hansol, who was just about to enter his room, "Oh, Kwan, should I wait for you to turn off the lights?" He asked.

Seungkwan nodded, "Yeah, I just want to grab some water". 

Hansol nodded back and disappeared into his room.

Seungkwan headed down the stairs and into the kitchen. By now, the house was completely dark, silent, no movement, everyone had gone to bed. 

He drank a glass of water, and as he stepped out of the kitchen and turned the corner, he found himself face to face with Jeonghan.

Seungkwan flinched backward, "Shit, Hyung, you scared me" He mumbled.

Jeonghan let out a soft chuckle, "You get scared that easily?" He teased.

Seungkwan pressed a hand to his chest, "I thought you were in your room".

Jeonghan shook his head, "I was about to, but I started thinking about what I said to you earlier" He explained, "I'm sorry, I think I was a bit harsh".

Seungkwan didn't say anything at first. 

Jeonghan smiled at him, "I didn't mean to hurt your feelings" He added, then stepped forward and loosely wrapped his arms around Seungkwan's shoulders in a gentle hug.

Seungkwan, though confused, returned the hug, "Don't worry, I didn't take it to heart. It's okay" He replied.

The hug only lasted a few seconds. Jeonghan's expression was more serious than usual as he stared at the darkness around them. Then he pulled back, forcing a smile, "Goodnight, then" He said.

"'Night" Seungkwan murmured, heading back toward his room.

≺≻

The morning went by in silence.

Rain was falling heavily outside, strangely out of season.

Minghao stood by the window with a cup of tea in hand, watching it stream down the glass, "The forecast said it was gonna be sunny all week" He muttered, pushing the curtain aside with his free hand, "Look how fucking hard it's raining".

Jihoon and Chan, sitting at the table, eating quietly between themselves, sighed. They knew Minghao cared a lot about the weather, it meant more time spent outdoors, away from the house.

Junhui looked up from his phone and walked over to him, "It's alright" He said, pointing at the screen, "I just checked, it's only raining today, tomorrow we can still go out for a walk or something, right?"

Minghao leaned back against the wall, shoulders heavy, "Yeah... Still sucks".

Then his eyes drifted to the table. Jeonghan's plate was still full, untouched. 

Minghao frowned, "He didn't eat anything" He picked up the plate and dumped the contents into the trash bin.

"Oh yeah" Chan chimed in, mouth full, "He said he wasn't that hungry, he told me he felt kind of nauseous this morning".

Jihoon raised a brow, "Really? He told me he was feeling better today".

A brief silence settled between them. No one said anything else about Jeonghan.

Far from the kitchen, down one of the long, dim hallways, Jeonghan stood alone, motionless in front of a mirror. He stared into his reflection's eyes, examining himself from head to toe.

In the mirror, a dark blur moved closer from behind, before he could even react, Seokmin's arm wrapped around his shoulders, "Hyung, what are you doing? Admiring yourself?" Seokmin laughed.

Jeonghan sighed, "Nothing, really... Just checking my hair" He replied vaguely, as if coming up with the excuse on the spot.

Seokmin gave him a bright smile, "And? Looks perfect, as usual" He playfully ruffled Jeonghan's hair.

A small smile tugged at Jeonghan's lips, "You think?"

Seokmin nodded, "Not many people in the world look like you. You're kinda unfair, actually".

Jeonghan let out a short laugh, a bit sharp, "What's with the compliments today? Don't tell me you've got a crush on me".

Seokmin shoved him lightly, grinning, "Hey, hey, quit it".

Jeonghan's laughter faded. A faint, almost unnatural smile lingered on his face, "I was joking. I know you don't mean that" He said, voice dropping ever so slightly, "I mean... I'm sure there's someone you like more than me".

Seokmin blinked, confused, "What?"

Jeonghan tilted his head just a little, eyes unreadable, "I'm just saying, you were joking, right? So I'm guessing there's someone else you think is prettier than me".

A pause. The hallway fell quiet, heavy with something unspoken.

Then Jeonghan added, his tone smooth, low, but not soft, "Joshua, right? I saw you two last night".

Seokmin stood still, eyes locked on Jeonghan's.

Something about the way he was looking at him felt off. Maybe it was the hallway's dimness, the only light slipping through the curtains at the end of the corridor, but Jeonghan's eyes looked too dark, deep. Almost hard to look away from.

He let out a nervous laugh, "Joshua? Hyung, what are you talking about? We're not... Together or anything, I mean, come on, we're not even gay" He raised a hand and waved it awkwardly, trying to brush off the idea.

Silence again.

Jeonghan just kept staring with the same intense look. Then, slowly, he turned back toward the mirror, "You're not...?" He echoed quietly, voice almost unreadable.

Seokmin started feeling uncomfortable, this definitely wasn't the kind of conversation he thought he'd ever have with one of his Hyungs, "I don't like Josh. Or guys, I swear" He added quickly, voice a bit too firm.

Jeonghan's expression shifted slightly, almost confused, but not quite, "Yeah... I get it" He murmured, "Sure, if you say so".

Then he exhaled softly and turned toward Seokmin once more. A hint of a smile, too vague to be warm, "You're both interesting, though. You and him".

And with that, Jeonghan walked away, disappearing around the corner to the right.

Seokmin stood still for a moment, motionless in front of the mirror. The hallway felt darker now, quieter. And yet, it was the same as before. He looked at himself, trying to smile, but something in his expression seemed disconnected. As if he was still caught in Jeonghan's gaze.

He shook himself out of it, rolled his shoulders, and headed back with a chill running down his spine.

*

The boys finally decided to play the Mafia game, since they couldn't go out and the afternoon had already settled deep into the house like a lazy shadow. Junhui was the one to suggest it, and he handed out small cards with the roles written on them. 

One by one, they flipped them over, each trying to keep their expression neutral enough not to give anything away.

Junhui sat down in the center of the living room, with the kind of expression that said he was just waiting for the perfect moment to unleash chaos, "Alright. Classic version. Two mafias, one doctor, one cop. The rest are citizens, since we're thirteen".

Jeonghan sat next to Seungcheol, who was too busy adjusting the sleeves of his hoodie to notice. He picked up his card and glanced at it briefly. No reaction.

Then came, casually, "Wait, can someone remind me of the rules?"

Everyone turned to look at him.

"What the hell are you saying?" Seungkwan said, "Jeonghan, you're the one who introduced us to this game".

Jeonghan pulled a crooked little smile, "Come on, just go over it again, you know I'm tired, my brain isn't exactly firing at full speed".

A sarcastic reply came from the other end of the couch, "Oh, so you still have neurons?" Soonyoung muttered under his breath.

Junhui frowned slightly but didn't say anything. He just went ahead and explained the rules again. No one pushed the issue too much, though Seokmin's eyes lingered on Jeonghan for just a second longer than the others'.

The first night passed. Eyes closed. Mafia wakes. The cop investigates. The doctor saves. No one died.

"It's morning, no murder last night".

A couple of exaggerated sighs of relief. A few laughs. And then, accusations.

The game had barely begun when Mingyu’s sharp eyes caught something off about Joshua. A small comment, was enough to raise suspicion. It shouldn’t have meant much, yet it implied Joshua already knew more than he should. The others picked up on it quickly, the air tightening with curiosity and doubt.

Then, almost naturally, the crowd’s attention shifted. Wonwoo pointed out that Seokmin had been unusually quiet, he had defended Soonyoung earlier, yet said nothing when the accusations began. The observation landed heavily.

Through it all, Jeonghan sat back, smiling faintly as he urged everyone to calm down. His voice was soft, steady, almost soothing, and because of that, no one seemed to notice how little he’d said all night.

While the others were still wrapped up in their debate, Seungcheol was distracted, struggling with a stubborn water bottle that just wouldn't twist open. 

Suddenly, Jeonghan walked behind him, quiet as ever, and slipped the bottle out of his hands, "Work with me" He whispered, voice low and deliberate.

Seungcheol looked up, surprised, and kept his voice just as quiet, "What do you mean?"

Jeonghan leaned down, handing the now-open bottle back to him, "I'll say a name, you agree with me, say they seem suspicious too. We push the vote together. Start picking off the weaker ones. Maybe we even hit the real mafia early".

Seungcheol hesitated. It didn't feel quite right. But Jeonghan was good at this game, scarily good. And if he was offering an alliance, why not?

He nodded slowly.

Still, the feeling of Jeonghan's breath hitting his ear lingered. It left a shiver, uncomfortable, but not in a bad way. He couldn't quite name what it was.

Jeonghan sat back down beside him like nothing had happened.

"I've been thinking" Jeonghan said smoothly, slipping back into the conversation, "It might actually be Seokmin".

A few heads turned, "Why?"

"Well" Jeonghan continued, eyes flicking across the room, "He was super quick to jump in earlier, defending Soonyoung, but when things got serious, he got quiet. That kind of switch is weird".

Seungcheol nodded, leaning forward a little, "Yeah, that's true, I noticed that too... Why you don't look so sure anymore?"

A beat passed. Then someone else murmured agreement. And another. Slowly, the tide shifted.

They had their target.

The innocent citizen Seokmin was eliminated.

By the third night, the tension in the room had thickened, whispers, quiet glances, silent suspicions. Somewhere between a joke and a warzone.

Jeonghan made his way behind Seungcheol again, moving like it was second nature. He leaned in close, voice low and almost playful, "When we win" He murmured, "We'll split the money".

But Seungcheol wasn't really listening. Not to the words, at least. He was too focused on the way Jeonghan's hand lingered on his shoulder, then slowly slid down, lower, deliberate, like he was about to wrap an arm around him. He didn't. But the closeness, the whisper against his ear, it made something in Seungcheol shiver.

Jeonghan didn't even notice. Or maybe he did. That was the worst part, he was unreadable. Why was he acting like this?

Sure, they were close. The occasional hug, the teasing, the way they'd lean into each other when they were tired, that was normal. Friendly. But this? This was too much.

Jeonghan pulled back, and went to sit again, calm and casual, like none of it had happened.

The debate picked up again.

But beneath the noise, something strange buzzed under the surface. Jihoon narrowed his eyes from across the room, "You two" He said, nodding at Jeonghan and Minghao, "You've been glancing at each other all this time".

Jeonghan gave a soft shrug, "What? I'm allowed to look at my friends".

"Yeah, that's true, but you blink like, in Morse code or something" Chan muttered.

Minghao smiled, eyes cool, "Maybe I just like his face" He joked.

"Hey, come on" Junhui almost whined, and Minghao moved a hand towards him, "I'm joking, Jun".

That got a few laughs, but the suspicion was there.

Another vote. Another wrong guess. The mafia had them wrapped around invisible strings.

When the players woke up from the third night, Junhui stood up with the solemn tone of an executioner, "Seungcheol... Is dead".

Groans. A few dramatic gasps. Seungcheol slumped back with a hand to his chest, mock betrayal, but his eyes were already scanning the room. He didn't get it. Who killed him?

"Alright" Junhui called over them, "Final result... The mafia were Jeonghan and Minghao, and they win".

The room fell silent.

Seungcheol's eyes flicked up to Jeonghan across the room, "Wait... Then who killed me?"

Jeonghan stood, brushing invisible dust from his sleeves, and walked over slowly, "I did, sorry" He said, smiling, not smug, just soft. Like it meant nothing.

"You?" Seungcheol blinked, "But, why?"

Jeonghan leaned in, barely a breath away from his face, "You trusted me too easily" He whispered, "That's always been your weakness".

And just like that, he turned around and sat back down. 

Seungcheol took it harder than he expected, more than he wanted to admit, even to himself. It was just a game, he knew that, but still, the disappointment sank in a little deeper.

*

It was past midnight. The house had gone quiet, as if everything had shut off except the faint hum of the dishwasher and a warm light left on in the living room. Seungcheol was about to retreat to his room when he heard the voice.

"Smoke with me?"

It was Jeonghan, standing by the door to the balcony.

Seungcheol nodded without thinking much.

They stepped outside. The night air was cooler on their bare arms. Jeonghan handed him a cigarette, and as he did, their fingers brushed, even though there was no real reason for them to.

They smoked in silence.

Jeonghan took a drag and spoke in that lazy way of his, "You still got that 'betrayed city boy' look".

Seungcheol let out half a laugh, "I just didn't see it coming, you and Minghao, honestly-"

"Perfect" Jeonghan finished for him, exhaling smoke, "We basically read each other's minds".

Then he paused for a second, "I hadn't smoked in a while, you know?"

Seungcheol looked at him sideways.

Jeonghan shrugged, "I'm trying to quit, I think it makes me more anxious, like... Remember that time with Seungkwan?"

Seungcheol watched his cigarette flare orange and nodded, "Yeah, he was really upset when you snapped at him like that, he came back looking like a kid who just got scolded by his dad".

Jeonghan chuckled, "Dramatic..." He murmured, grinning at him, "I apologized, and now... I'm working on it, on myself. You saw me today, I was calm, right?"

"Calm while you were manipulating everyone?"

"Calm while I was winning" Jeonghan said softly, with a touch of smugness.

Seungcheol smiled, and just as his cigarette started to burn low, he felt Jeonghan's hand land on his bare thigh. 

Seungcheol looked down at the hand, but then the blonde spoke again, "Smoking makes me more nervous, I swear. This is my last one, for real, I'm quitting tomorrow".

Seungcheol swallowed, more focused now on the hand that was slowly stroking his thigh, "But you love smoking" He muttered, mostly just to say something, anything, to distract himself from Jeonghan's hand.

Jeonghan, for his part, kept looking out at the woods, cigarette at his lips, "Yeah, but I love my health more" He said, hand moving slightly higher, "And if it makes me agitated, I end up snapping at the people around me, I don't wanna be like that with you guys, I wanna be... The usual Jeonghan".

It was like Seungcheol couldn't hear anymore. 

Jeonghan's hand was now under his pants, fingers just skimming the edge of his boxers. Jeonghan kept talking, eyes still elsewhere, and Seungcheol felt like a pervert for thinking it, but some part of him wanted Jeonghan to accidentally touch him.

Only it wasn't an accident. Jeonghan knew exactly what he was doing. It was always like this with him, the weird stuff he did, he did on purpose, for his own entertainment. But this time it felt different. He never touched his friends like that. It felt like at any second, Jeonghan was actually going to grab his cock.

Seungcheol trembled, his right leg twitching involuntarily. He was getting hard over nothing. It was stupid, creepy, shameful.

Suddenly, Jeonghan's hand was gone. He took the cigarette from his mouth, "The last one" He murmured, stubbing it out in the ashtray, "That was nice" Then he stood, "I'll try to sleep. Night" He said, ruffling Seungcheol's hair before heading back inside.

Seungcheol crushed his own cigarette in the ashtray, his breathing still uneven, the warmth of Jeonghan's hand lingering on his skin.

What the hell had just happened? And why?

Jeonghan knew, he knew Seungcheol was in love with him. So why touch him like that, if he didn't feel the same?

That's what made it worse,  the way Seungcheol had felt. The fact that he had liked it. He hated the way his body had responded, hated the excitement tied to a touch that meant nothing, from someone who'd already made it clear he didn't love him back.

He got up from the chair, but he couldn't just ignore the way he felt his cock half hard. He moved inside the house and straight to his bedroom. 

When he went inside, Chan wasn't there: Seungcheol was confused, but then remembered, Chan was probably in the living room, lying on the couch, he had drank some beers with Seokmin and fallen asleep there.

Seungcheol closed the door behind him, but didn't lock it, it would be weird if, for some reason, Chan came back and found it shut tight like he was hiding something.

He lay down on his side, trying to ignore the way his body was burning, but when he glanced down, the bulge in his pants was impossible to ignore. Worse, it hurt.

He flipped onto his back, shoved his pants and boxers down quickly. At first he was going to jerk off,  but when he thought about Jeonghan's hand on his thigh, about the way he had whispered in his ear that afternoon.

It didn't feel like he wanted to touch himself, it felt like he wanted to get fucked.

He wet his fingers with saliva, bringing them down between his legs without hesitation. He pushed two fingers inside himself fast, not thinking, just needing it. His legs spread wider to give him more access, but even like this, alone, it was hard to feel satisfied.

It wasn't the same. It wasn't Jeonghan.

His breath came in rough, shallow pulls. He didn't let himself moan. That wasn't supposed to be anything, just a release.

He curled his fingers, searching for something deeper, and when he hit his prostate, his hips jerked up sharply. It was too much, but at the same time, it was not enough.

He thought about Jeonghan. About how it would feel if he was there with him. If it was his voice in his ear again, telling him to stay still. If it was his cock instead of just his fingers. If he was actually being wanted back.

And it was enough to push him over. He came hard, his body tensing, trembling.

And then, nothing, just silence. 

The shaking in his legs, the tight breaths, they were still there, but his mind was somewhere else entirely.

He hadn't wanted this, not like this, and not thinking about him. Not using Jeonghan's voice in his head, his face, his touch, like he was something to consume.

He pulled his arm over his face, as if hiding from the ceiling, from the room, from the memory of what he'd just done.

The guilt sank in slow and heavy, like a tide. It wasn't just about what he'd done, it was the fact that he knew he'd do it again. He always did.

Chapter Text

The sixth morning was quieter than usual.

Seungcheol came down the stairs barefoot, dragging his hoodie sleeves over his hands, still hazy from sleep but already carrying the ache in his chest. 

He wasn't angry, not really. When he walked into the kitchen, the table was empty, nobody was there, and nothing was prepared to eat. He sighed, maybe he'd just have some coffee, even though he usually didn't.

He took a cup and filled it with coffee, then moved to the living room. 

He furrowed his brow when he saw Junhui and Minghao sitting side by side. Minghao's face looked pale, and in his hand was a cup of tea. Junhui sat close, his hand resting on Minghao's shoulder, rubbing it gently.

Seungcheol walked toward them and sat on the other couch, "Minghao, are you okay?" He asked.

Minghao nodded slightly, "Kind of" He replied softly. 

Junhui snapped, "He's not, he wasn't feeling well last night, maybe he drank too much yesterday" His voice was sharp, but his eyes showed worry for his boyfriend.

It was strange to see them like that. Sometimes they were close, but not affectionate like this.

There was a pause. Seungcheol didn't ask more. The way Junhui's hand moved, slowly, felt more protective than casual, and something twisted in his stomach.

His eyes shifted to another figure lying on the other couch, an arm draped over his face, Chan, still asleep.

Seungcheol thought that if only Chan had been in the room last night, he wouldn't have touched himself, not knowing someone else was there. But why the hell hadn't Chan gone to their room? If he had, none of this would've happened. 

He shook it off, sipping his coffee too fast and burning his tongue slightly.

His mind wouldn't stop. Every glance at Minghao's pale face or Junhui's quiet touch made last night replay like a broken reel in his head, his back arching against his own fingers, breathing through guilt, trying to forget the way Jeonghan's voice had curled in his ear.

He couldn't stop thinking about it.

Seungcheol's gaze flickered between Junhui and Minghao, sitting so close it made his chest tighten uncomfortably. How Minghao leaned into him, it was strange. Strange enough that Seungcheol snapped.

"Can you two stop, please?"

Junhui and Minghao exchanged confused glances, "Stop what? We're not doing anything" Junhui replied, pulling back slightly from his boyfriend.

Seungcheol let out a forced laugh, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly, "Yeah, I know, it's just... Hard to watch".

Minghao frowned, and Junhui was quick to respond, "Hard to watch what? I don't-" He cut himself off, noticing the expression on Seungcheol's face. 

It wasn't disgust or anger. It was something else. Embarrassment, maybe, or shame. Whatever it was, it looked unfamiliar on Seungcheol.

"What's wrong?" Junhui asked, a little more gently this time.

Seungcheol swallowed hard, his eyes dropping to the coffee cup cradled in his hands, "I'm fine. Just trying to keep my head straight".

Silence fell. The knot in Seungcheol's stomach only pulled tighter.

A beat later, he spoke again, softer this time, "No, sorry. I don't know why I said that. Keep going" He took a sip of his coffee, eyes still down.

The voices came before the steps, light, breathy laughter echoing from the second floor, followed by the unmistakable clatter of feet rushing down the other floor stairs.

Jeonghan and Joshua appeared at the landing almost in sync, bumping shoulders like two teenagers. Jeonghan pushed him lightly, and Joshua laughed, grabbing the railing as if he was about to fall.

"No one cooked yet?" Joshua asked once they reached the door of the kitchen.

"Lazy" Jeonghan added, "Guess it's up to us, huh?"

Before entering the kitchen, the two of them noticed Chan still asleep on the couch. 

Jeonghan gave Joshua a mischievous look and pointed to the couch, "Look, he's still sleeping" He moved toward the couch and knelt down beside Chan, gently poking his side before beginning to lightly tickle him, "Hey, Channie, time to wake up".

Chan stirred a little, groaning softly, his eyes still closed, too tired to push Jeonghan away.

Joshua joined in, crouching beside Chan and lightly tapping his head, "Come on, sleepyhead, it's time to get up".

Chan blinked a few times, trying to wake up, but he was still groggy and disoriented, "Ugh... What time is it?" He muttered, his voice thick with sleep.

Minghao, who had been sitting quietly on the couch nearby, finally looked up and chuckled, "Come on, leave him alone, he's barely awake".

Jeonghan and Joshua both stopped, looking at each other with grins, "Alright, alright" Jeonghan said, standing up and backing off from Chan, playfully holding his hands up in mock surrender.

The two boys made their way into the kitchen, starting to rummage through the cupboards and fridge to gather ingredients for breakfast. 

Seungcheol, still sitting on the couch, kept his eyes fixed on Jeonghan.

The way Jeonghan picked up the spatula right after Joshua did. The way he stirred the pan in the same exact rhythm. Even the way he tilted his head when he laughed, almost as if mimicking the other boy's every gesture.

At first, it seemed natural. But then, not anymore.

It felt like watching a reflection try to match its source too perfectly. Like Jeonghan wasn't interacting with Joshua, but learning from him.

Seungcheol rubbed his eyes, his gaze shifting from the two in the kitchen to the coffee cup in his hands. 

Chan finally sat up, stretching and running a hand through his messy hair, Seungcheol's focus shifted again, "Hey, guys" Chan mumbled, his voice hoarse from sleep, "God, I don't remember anything..."

He glanced over at Seungcheol, still sitting on the couch, "No, wait... I drank something with Seokmin, and... Maybe there was also Soonyoung, there... Oh my God" He mumbled, and Minghao laughed, "How much did you drink?"

Luckly, the way Chan was trying to remember was funny, and Seungcheol found himself more interested in Chan's story then anything, and he leaved Joshua and Jeonghan alone, without looking at them anymore.

*

Outside, the air was already starting to cool, and the grass felt damp under their shoes. 

A tangle of extension cords snaked across the yard from the back door to the gazebo near the edge of the property, where Mingyu, Minghao, and Junhui were crouched around the karaoke machine. 

Jihoon stood nearby with his arms crossed, watching with a look that was more skeptical than concerned.

"You said you knew how to do it" Minghao complained, glaring down at Mingyu, who was hunched over the mess of cables with furrowed brows, fiddling with the connector.

Mingyu let out a dramatic sigh, "Don't fucking pressure me, I know what I'm doing".

Junhui knelt beside him with a flashlight from his phone, holding it steady, "You better" He muttered under his breath, though his lips were curled in a half-smile.

Jihoon leaned against the outer wall of the house, arms still folded, "If you don't know what to do, we can skip-"

Before he could finish the sentence, the karaoke machine came to life with a loud beep and the hum of power. Its screen lit up, flickering slightly before steadying into the song menu.

Minghao and Jihoon both raised their eyebrows in surprise. Jihoon even blinked a little, impressed despite himself.

Mingyu stood up immediately, brushing off his pants like he'd just fixed a car engine instead of plugged in a karaoke machine, "Fuck you" He said smugly, pointing at Jihoon, "And fuck you too" Now gesturing at Minghao, "None of you believed in me".

He then headed back around the house, toward the part where a few of the boys were still finishing their dinner. "Guys!" Mingyu called out, waving both arms, "The karaoke machine is ready, let's sing something!"

Slowly, the group stood up, grabbing drinks and tossing their trash into a bag, moving toward the other side of the house.

Under the gazebo, a couple of lanterns hung from the wooden beams, giving the whole scene a soft orange glow, and also there were a couple of couches there.

Some of the boys crowded around the song list, scrolling through it with mild curiosity.

"There are a lot of English songs..." Soonyoung muttered, squinting at the screen. Jihoon, standing next to him, raised an eyebrow, "They're all pretty famous, you don't know them?"

Soonyoung shrugged, "I mean, I do, but I don't really know the lyrics".

Hearing their conversation, Joshua wandered over with a small laugh, "You seriously don't know the lyrics? These are some of the easiest ones out there".

Hansol chimed in, slinging an arm casually over Soonyoung's shoulder, "Josh, come on, let's just sing something in English, then we'll leave the mic to the others".

Joshua and Hansol take the stage first. When they finish, Chan and Wonwoo step up next, choosing a classic Korean song. 

The energy softens into something more nostalgic as their duet carries a quiet sincerity, shifting the night from playful fun to heartfelt warmth.

From where he sat on the edge of the gazebo, Seungcheol glanced toward the group. His gaze lingered again on Jeonghan, who sat nearby, leaning against a post, smiling at the performance.

But there was something off.

His smile felt delayed, too careful, and when the others clapped at a particularly funny note Chan hit, Jeonghan didn't laugh. He just tilted his head, watching the reactions around him before mimicking them.

It felt not spontaneous.

Seungcheol rubbed the side of his neck, suddenly aware of the way the back of his shirt was sticking to his skin.

Something about that night was too weird, and nobody noticed the things Seungcheol was noticing.

As the second chorus began, Seungcheol shifted slightly in his seat, trying to get comfortable. 

Then, a tickle. Just the lightest brush across his calf.

He flinched instinctively and looked down, heart stuttering, a spider, small but fast, crawling just above his ankle. Without thinking, he jerked his leg and slammed his palm down hard, crushing it.

The crack of his hand against skin and wood was sharp enough to make Seungkwan glance over, but not for long. Everyone was still focused on Chan and Wonwoo, who were delivering the final verse like they were auditioning for a musical.

Seungcheol wiped his hand on his pants, swallowing the unease in his throat. He went to look back at the group.

And froze.

Jeonghan was staring at him.

Not laughing, not smiling, just watching.

The kind of look you only notice when it's been going on for too long. His face unreadable, head tilted just slightly, like he had been mid-thought and never looked away.

Jeonghan blinked, once, and then his expression shifted effortlessly into a grin. He turned his head toward the music, clapping softly with the others as the song ended.

Then they kept singing, one song after another, until Jeonghan suddenly stood up and took one of the microphones.

"Cheol, sing with me" He said, offering it out to him.

Seungcheol blinked from the couch. He hesitated, but Jeonghan was already smiling at him, waiting. So he got up.

They scrolled through the karaoke list together. Jeonghan didn't really seem to care which song they picked, he just kept nodding and smiling at whatever Seungcheol suggested. It was odd, but Seungcheol let it slide. Eventually, they landed on Very Good by Block B.

From the first beat, the mood shifted, fast, chaotic. It whe kind of song Seungcheol could throw his voice into without thinking. Jeonghan's lighter tone was almost comical against the rougher parts.

The others were laughing, clapping, half-singing along from the couches.

At one point, Jeonghan looked over at him. Their eyes met mid-line, and Seungcheol smiled without meaning to.

It was strange. He wasn't thinking about the stares, about last night, or the guilt, or the way Jeonghan had felt too off to ignore.

He was just in it. 3The music, Jeonghan's eyes, his voice.

Maybe everything was okay after all.

It was getting late. One by one, the boys headed back inside, their laughter fading into quiet yawns.

Seungcheol stayed out a little longer with Mingyu, helping him pack up the karaoke setup.

"You think it's gonna rain tomorrow?" Mingyu asked as he coiled up the extension cable.

Seungcheol shrugged, "Well... Hope not, we've a barbecue tomorrow evening".

Mingyu nodded and yawned, "Right... I'm knocking out as soon as I get in".

Seungcheol chuckled, "Yeah, same".

Once everything was unplugged and pushed back against the wall, Seungcheol stretched his arms overhead, groaning softly at the tightness in his shoulders. Then, he turned and headed back inside.

Jeonghan was in the living room, quietly helping Minghao set up a lounge chair. Their hands moved in sync, neither saying much. When Seungcheol stepped in, Jeonghan looked up.

Jeonghan smiled and walked toward him, "Going to sleep?"

Seungcheol nodded, "Yeah I'm tired".

The blond hummed, "You weren't, a few minutes ago" He said with a soft laugh, "I didn't know you could sing like that".

Seungcheol let out a small smile, "Yeah, we should do that more, all of us, I mean, karaoke nights".

"I'd like that" Jeonghan replied, his eyes lingering a second too long, "I like your voice, it's... Sharp, but in a beautiful way, not many humans have voices like that".

That caught Seungcheol off guard. The wording, the way he said that.

Silence hung for a second too long.

Maybe it was just how late it was. Maybe Jeonghan was tired, too, talking without thinking.

Seungcheol pushed the weirdness aside and smiled faintly, "I know, right?" He sniffed and rubbed at his nose, "Alright, I'm going to bed, I'm exhausted".

Jeonghan nodded, "Good night, then".

"'Night".

And with that, Seungcheol turned and walked off toward his room, trying not to overthink it, trying not to notice how the strangeness of Jeonghan had slipped back in, just when he'd started to forget.

≺≻

It was already afternoon. The sky was heavy with clouds, no rain, but the temperature had definitely dropped compared to the last few days. 

Still, despite the chill in the air, Seungkwan, Hansol, and Chan had begged Minghao and Junhui to take them to the lake again.

They agreed, mostly to make the younger ones happy. Seungcheol, Jeonghan, and Mingyu decided to tag along too.

Down by the water, Seungcheol sat on a flat rock next to Mingyu, who was crouched over his camera, adjusting the settings to get the perfect shot of the others. 

A little further off, the younger three were splashing around in the shallow edge of the lake, the kind where the water barely reached their knees.

Seungcheol let out a laugh when Chan slipped on a slick rock and fell backwards into the water with a surprised yelp. 

Chan sat there in the cold water, soaked and blinking, as Seungkwan and Hansol tried, and failed, to hold back their laughter.

Seungcheol smirked and muttered, "What an idiot" While Mingyu chuckled and showed him the photo he'd just snapped mid-fall, Chan flailing, water flying everywhere.

Junhui, who just checked if Chan was actually okay, returned to the rock, brushing water off his hands as he went to sit back down.

Before he could, Jeonghan slipped an arm casually around his shoulders, "Is Chan okay?" He asked, smiling, "That fall looked painful".

Seungcheol glanced over instinctively at the sound of his voice, and froze. Junhui's expression shifted in a way that didn't match the moment. He wasn't smiling back, not really. He looked uncomfortable.

Junhui tried to ease out of Jeonghan's grasp, carefully, like he didn't want to be obvious about it, "He said he's fine" He muttered, his eyes on the water.

Jeonghan stayed close, "They look like kids, don't they?" He added, still smiling, eyes following the younger ones playing.

Junhui gave a small, polite smile, the kind you give when you want to end a conversation. But when Jeonghan didn't move, he reached up and gently took his arm, peeling it away.

"If you didn't want me close, you could've just said so" Jeonghan said with a light laugh, but there was something odd in his voice. That same weird, smiling tone.

Junhui blinked, caught off guard, "What? No, not at all. It's just... You know how Minghao is, he'll get jealous".

There was a pause, too long. The air seemed to shift.

Then Jeonghan laughed again, a breathy, amused sound, "Right. So jealous, I know".

He finally stepped away.

Seungcheol hadn't heard the whole exchange, but he saw all of it, the tension in Junhui's shoulders, the way his eyes flicked away, how his hands had fidgeted in his lap when Jeonghan got too close.

Something was off.

Why did Junhui looked so uncomfortable?

He turned his attention back toward the others, Chan was now standing, still being teased by Hansol. Mingyu raised his camera again and took another picture, smiling to himself. Everything looked normal.

Except it didn't feel that way.

*

Seokmin looked intensely focused as he held a lighter close to the coals in the grill. The sun was beginning to set, but despite the hour, it was still fairly warm, the clouds that had hung low all afternoon were finally gone, leaving the sky clear and soft with evening light.

Mingyu appeared carrying heavy plastic bags, Wonwoo following close behind. The bags were full, packed with enough meat to feed the whole group, probably twice.

Jeonghan walked over with a second lighter in hand, "Try this one" He offered, passing it to Seokmin.

With a quick flick, a small flame sparked to life, and in seconds the coals caught.

"Thanks, Hyung!" Seokmin grinned, patting Jeonghan's shoulder proudly.

Mingyu and Wonwoo set everything down on the small table next to the grill.

"Alright" Wonwoo began, opening the bags and laying everything out, "We've got all this, it should be enough for all of us" He looked over at Seokmin, "You're handling the grill, right?"

Seokmin nodded confidently.

Among the cuts was one type of beef, yukhoe, that could technically be eaten raw, even if it wasn't exactly recommended in their setting.

Jeonghan stepped closer to the table, eyes scanning over the meat with curiosity.

"You guys really got a ton of stuff" He said, sounding genuinely surprised. Then he pointed toward one of the pieces, "This one... You can eat it raw, right? I heard that somewhere".

Mingyu and Wonwoo exchanged a look. "I mean... I think so?" Mingyu said, uncertain, "I've heard that too, but... I don't know if it's actually good raw".

Jeonghan just shrugged, "Then I'll try it for all of you".

Before either of them could stop him, he picked up the slice of meat and popped it into his mouth, chewing slowly.

The other three exchanged a glance, somewhere between surprised and slightly grossed out.

Jeonghan raised his eyebrows, "Okay, yeah, it's actually really good".

Wonwoo frowned, "Alright... If you say so".

Before the conversation could go any further, Joshua, who had been standing not far away, chimed in, "Jeonghan, are you serious? You're eating it raw too? What are you, an animal?"

Jeonghan answered without missing a beat, "So what? I'm not the only one, a lot of people eat it like this".

Joshua shot back, "You say that like it's something to be proud of, and in front of me, too?" His voice turned cold, sharper than usual. 

Mingyu and Wonwoo kept glancing back and forth between them, like watching a verbal match they hadn't expected.

Jeonghan scoffed, "It's not like I was looking for you, you came over here".

Joshua's brow furrowed, "I came over because you're literally eating raw dead animal, do you even know how dangerous that is? You could get food poisoning if it hasn't been treated properly".

Jeonghan stepped forward, "Sounds more like you're just pissed that we don't all share your taste".

Joshua blinked, thrown off. He didn't even know where the conversation was going anymore, "What? I was worring about you, that's-"

Jeonghan cut in again, "Not true? Because it sure feels like you expect all twelve of us to stop eating meat just because you did".

The tension rose fast, so much so that even the boys sitting farther down at the table were beginning to notice the shift. The air got thick, quiet.

Seokmin finally looked up from the grill and turned toward the two, "Listen, Joshua, you're really pissing me off. Mingyu and Wonwoo went out to buy all that meat for tonight and we all just want to have fun, if Jeonghan wants to eat it raw, then let him, it's not your job to tell him what he can or can't do. And if it bothers you that much, then just leave".

Joshua's face shifted from anger to disappointment in a heartbeat, "Having fun while eating dead animals raw? Fine" He muttered, before turning away and walking back to join the others at the table.

Seokmin turned his gaze back to Mingyu and Wonwoo, then to Jeonghan, who had crossed his arms and walked off without another word. 

Mingyu cleared his throat, trying to lighten the mood, "I'll help you out" He said, starting to take out a few pieces of meat from the bag.

The evening went on as usual, or at least, everyone pretended like nothing had happened, even though Joshua didn't quite seem like himself. 

They grabbed some beers and spent most of the evening chatting, until some of them decided to head back inside to clean up the kitchen. Others stayed outside, still sipping their beers, and a few had moved further into the yard.

Soonyoung kept his gaze up at the sky, the constellations crystal clear now, especially out there, in the middle of nowhere, "Jihoon, what's that one?" He asked, pointing toward a cluster of stars. His finger wobbled slightly from the alcohol, but Jihoon could still tell which one he meant.

"That's Lyra" He explained, glancing up, "The star is Vega" Jihoon's gaze moved quickly in the sky, recognizing everything, "Also... That's Cygnus, see the cross shape? And just below them, Aquila. Those three form the Summer Triangle".

Soonyoung tilted his head, "Why do constellations have these shapes?" He asked, turning his eyes to Jihoon.

Jihoon shrugged slightly, "It's just how people connected the dots, shapes made it easier to remember them".

Soonyoung hummed, "Oh right... And what about the one shaped like a teapot?"

"Sagittarius" Jihoon said, "I'm not sure... We should alredy be able to see it..." He said as he raised his gaze, starting to look up.

He was usually good at recognizing constellations at a glance, but that one just wasn't showing up that night.

Seokmin was sitting not far from the two of them, next to Hansol and Minghao, so Jihoon turned toward him, "Seokmin, do you still have that app that recognizes constell-" He didn't finish the sentence.

His eyes caught the way Seokmin's gaze seemed distant, not on them, not on the conversation. Even though he was physically close, his thoughts were clearly elsewhere. Jihoon followed the direction of Seokmin's stare, and saw it landed on Joshua.

Joshua was sitting alone on a log near the wooden railing that bordered the edge of the garden. He was facing away from the group, probably looking out at the moonlit landscape below. Still holding a beer in one hand, but barely drinking it.

It was subtle, but Jihoon noticed the weight behind Seokmin's expression, something between guilt and worry.

The conversation about constellations came to an end, and Soonyoung didn't ask any more questions, he, too, had noticed Seokmin's gaze. 

Jihoon, honestly, was starting to get tired of all that, and leaned back comfortably in his chair, crossing one leg over the other, "Are you worried?" He asked, "Joshua's been over there for... I don't know, at least twenty minutes? He hasn't said a word all evening".

Seokmin didn't reply. He didn't even lift his eyes to meet Jihoon's.

Jihoon sighed, and without hesitation, said, "You like Joshua, don't you?"

That got Seokmin to look up.

"Well, since you like him that much, do the only smart thing you can do right now, go apologize" Jihoon said, his tone calm but certain.

For the first time, Seokmin didn't deny it, "He'll push me away... I went too far this time".

Junhui chimed in, "Well, Seokmin, that's already a step forward, see? You understand you messed up".

Jihoon nodded, "Exactly. Show him you're mature enough to admit your mistake, say you're sorry, seriously" He paused, then added with quiet confidence, "Trust me, everyone appreciates a sincere apology, especially from someone they like" And with that, he took another sip of his beer.

Seokmin lowered his gaze for a few seconds, then stood up, leaving his beer on the ground.

Soonyoung looked at him with a proud kind of expression, "Finally, I was getting tired of how they acted".

Jihoon sighed, "Let's just hope he won't say something stupid. I don't want to deal with those two fighting again or listen to their love problems".

Soonyoung sniffed and asked, "More beers?" As he got up, and the other guys nodded.

Seokmin walked over to Joshua with a steady pace and cleared his throat, maybe the alcohol was giving him more confidence. He cleared his throat again, Joshua turned around.

Neither said a word, and they looked at each other for a few moments. Then Seokmin put his hands in his pockets, "Can I sit with you?" He asked.

Joshua nodded and moved his hoodie aside to make space for Seokmin.

They stayed quiet for a while. Seokmin followed Joshua's gaze and realized there was nothing to see, it was all dark. He wondered what Joshua had been looking at all this time.

Seokmin wasn't sure what he was about to say, but he tried, "About earlier... I'm sorry".

That immediately caught Joshua's attention, who looked at him with interest.

Seokmin sighed, "Really, I've never felt this much like an asshole, and I didn't want to be one with you... Because I respect everything you said earlier, I was stupid..."

He swallowed and lowered his gaze, "I just wanted to stop you from fighting with Jeonghan, but I only made things worse and offended you... I'm sorry, I didn't want tonight to end like this over something stupid".

He noticed Joshua's furrowed brow and raised his hands defensively, "Ah, I mean, it's not stupid that you got upset over what Jeonghan did, but how we started arguing for no reason, I should've told Jeonghan to stop instead of babbling..." He stayed quiet for a moment, "As usual".

He cleared his throat. Joshua still said nothing, so Seokmin felt forced to speak again, "So... Nothing, I'm sorry" He was quiet again for a moment, "Sometimes I understand my mistakes too, and I didn't want to ignore that because... I care about you".

There was a moment of silence.

Joshua hadn't said a word, and Seokmin couldn't tell if what he'd just said was enough, or if he'd talked too much, or maybe not enough at all.

Then, without a word, Joshua slid the hoodie off his lap, letting it fall to the ground like it didn't matter, and in the blink of an eye, he leaned in and pressed his lips against Seokmin's.

His hand moved to the back of Seokmin's neck, steady and warm. Seokmin froze for a second, hands hovering awkwardly midair, he'd been ready for anything, everything, except this.

It lasted just a few seconds. Then Joshua pulled back slightly, though he stayed close, his face still near Seokmin's, "I appreciate it" He paused, then gave a small nod, lips tugging into a barely-there smile, "I think I really like you".

Seokmin was still a little awkward, sitting beside Joshua. His hands fidgeted slightly on his lap, his posture uncertain, as if unsure whether to stay or say something else. 

There was a beat of silence between them, and then, suddenly, Joshua leaned in again and kissed him, softer this time. Seokmin then finally kissed him back. His shoulders relaxed as his hand instinctively found Joshua's arm, holding onto it gently.

Junhui kept his eyes on Seokmin and Joshua from a distance, and noticed that Jihoon and Soonyoung were doing the same. 

He cleared his throat, "We really shouldn't be staring" He muttered, then cracked open yet another can of beer, "Hey... You two..." He said, trying to shift the mood and draw his two friends' attention, "Do you guys really look at the stars every night before bed?" He asked.

Jihoon and Soonyoung exchanged a quick glance, and then Jihoon answered, "Pretty much, we've got a nice rooftop, you can see the stars really well from there, so yeah, more or less".

Junhui nodded, looking a little weirded out by the idea, and Soonyoung chimed in,
"Hey, it's actually really nice, ever since I started stargazing before bed, I sleep better, I used to wake up constantly during the night, but now I sleep like seven hours straight, no problem".

Then he tilted his head, "You should try it too, with your boyfriend. It's relaxing".

Junhui took a sip of his beer and shook his head, "Nah, I'm not really a star expert" He said, waving his hand slightly.

Jihoon raised an eyebrow, "Then come over here, I'll teach you something" He said, tapping the now-empty seat next to him.

Junhui sighed, but gave in and went to sit next to Jihoon, who started pointing out a few constellations in the sky.

Inside the house, a few of the guys were tidying up the kitchen together, but Jeonghan was distracted. His eyes were fixed outside the window as he leaned nearby, watching Joshua and Seokmin kiss in the dim light.

Seungcheol noticed. He hadn't realized at first what Jeonghan was looking at, but once he did, he walked over and placed a hand on his shoulder, "Jeonghan, don't stare" He said. 

Surprisingly, Jeonghan resisted, slipping out of Seungcheol's grip with a grin, "Come on, I'm just watching, I didn't see that coming, honestly".

Seungcheol placed his hands on his hips, "They just needed the right moment, we all knew it" He said.

"Guess they just needed the right push".

Seungcheol nodded, "Kind of".

The blond glanced back at them, "Sometimes people just need the right person to push them".

Seungcheol scoffed, smirking a little, "You say that like you're the one doing the pushing".

"I actyally do, sometimes" Jeonghan replied, his voice casual, "Only when I want them to move".

Seungcheol frowned, "What does that even mean? How much did you drink?"

There was a second of silence, a tiny shift in the air, where both of them knew that line had a double meaning, but neither of them said anything.

Jeonghan gave him a knowing smile before pushing off the wall and stepping past Seungcheol, "You know what I mean" He said, still smiling, "And stop judging me, you're not that innocent, you're worse than me, and that says a lot".

He patted Seungcheol's shoulder before heading over to the table, where a few beer cans were lying around, and grabbed one.

Seungcheol's mind started racing.

What the hell did that mean?

Jeonghan was weird. That was a weird thing to say. And the way he looked at him, like he knew something. Like he knew what Seungcheol had done.

That was impossible. Jeonghan couldn't know what Seungcheol had done alone in his room. He'd been quiet. There were no suspicious noises.

But then again, what if Jeonghan had seen the bump in his pants before going to his room? Was that why he said what he said?

Seungcheol brought a hand to his face and took a deep breath. He was overthinking it. Jeonghan just talked nonsense, he always had. Nothing to worry about.

He went back to helping the others in the kitchen, trying to shake off Jeonghan's words from his mind.

Chapter Text

The next morning, the air inside the house was warm, literally. The sun was finally high, and the heat had settled in: the perfect day to head down to the lake for a swim. 

Like most mornings, Jeonghan had barely touched his food, but at this point, no one really paid attention anymore.

He lingered in the shadiest corner of the kitchen, scrolling aimlessly on his phone.

Seungcheol was helping Seungkwan wash the dishes, but his eyes kept drifting back to Jeonghan. He noticed how, despite the heat, he still wore that hoodie, and how often he blinked, like he could barely keep his eyes open.

"Hyung, dry this" Seungkwan's voice snapped him out of it, and Seungcheol took the plate he handed him, drying it quickly.

Joshua walked into the kitchen with a tired posture, "'Morning" He mumbled, and the three other guys replied back.

"Josh, do you want this? I'm not gonna finish it anyway" Jeonghan said, offering him a small bowl of soybean sprouts.

Joshua shrugged and took it, "Sure".

Then he glanced over at the stove, where a pot of ramyeon sat, "Mingyu made this?" He asked, looking at Seungkwan, who nodded, "Yeah, if you want it, go ahead, I don't think anyone else will".

Joshua grabbed the leftover noodles as well and sat on the other side of the table. 

Jeonghan was staring at him, and Joshua started to stare back, "You look tired" He said flatly.

The blond crossed his legs on the chair, "Didn't sleep much".

"Big surprise" Joshua said dryly, stuffing some noodles into his mouth.

Jeonghan looked at him for a few moments, then smiled, "Since Seokmin apologized, I started thinking about it too, I was kind of an asshole yesterday, wasn't I?"

Seungkwan was watching them from the corner of his eye. So was Seungcheol, curious to see where the conversation was going.

Joshua blew on his noodles, "Yeah, totally".

"I'm sorry" Jeonghan murmured, leaning a bit on the table to meet Joshua's eyes.

Joshua sighed, "It's fine, I'm not mad anymore, don't worry about it".

The conversation ended quicker than expected.

Seungcheol kept trying to figure out what was off with Jeonghan, but now he just looked normal again. He shook his head and focused back on the plates he was drying.

*

In the afternoon, after lunch, the boys headed toward the lake. The heat was intense, and walking with all the bags they were carrying was no easy task. They even brought a cooler with them, figuring it might be nice to have dinner there later.

The only good thing about the path was that it was all downhill, so at least the walk wasn't too exhausting.

Junhui, who was leading the group alongside Minghao, turned his head slightly, then glanced back at his boyfriend, "Jeonghan looks weak, did you notice?" He said quietly.

Minghao turned for a second, glancing at Jeonghan walking sluggishly behind them, still wearing his light blue hoodie despite the heat. He nodded, "Well, maybe it's because it's really hot today".

He didn't seem to think anything was out of the ordinary, but Junhui had a feeling something wasn't right.

Still, it didn't look like anyone else had picked up on it. Or maybe Seungcheol was in the same boat.

The boys finally reached the lake. The air there was cooler, but that didn't change the fact that the sun was still scorching. Some of them jumped straight into the water, while others took their time, spreading out towels on the ground.

Jeonghan sat on a shaded rock, but as the minutes passed, he seemed to be getting worse.

No one really paid attention, at least not until he stood up and started walking toward Wonwoo, Hansol, and Seungcheol, who were still sitting on a towel chatting.

"I think I'm heading back up... I don't feel well" He said, his voice was off, low, weak.

Wonwoo stood up, "You sure? Maybe it's just the heat".

Jeonghan shook his head, "No, really... I think I've got a fever".

Wonwoo raised his hand and touched Jeonghan's forehead. He was burning up, way too hot to be just a regular fever, "Shit, you're on fire".

The blond shrugged, "It's better if I go back".

Seungcheol looked at him, then stood up, "I'll go with you" He offered. 

Jeonghan lifted a hand and waved it off, "No, I can do it alone".

"I'm not letting you go by yourself if you're sick" Seungcheol replied.

Jeonghan sighed, then started walking, and Seungcheol followed.

For the first few minutes, everything was fine, but then Jeonghan began to struggle, walking as if he might collapse at any moment.

Seungcheol slipped an arm around his waist, silently, just to make sure he wouldn't suddenly faint and hit the ground.

Jeonghan's body radiated heat, so much so that even without direct skin contact, Seungcheol could feel it as if he was touching bare skin. His face had gone pale, almost grayish, but maybe it was just the way the sunlight hit him.

They finally reached the house, and there, Jeonghan gently pulled away from Seungcheol's hold, "Thanks, I'll go in by myself now".

Seungcheol frowned, "I'll walk you inside".

Jeonghan forced a smile, "Go have fun. What could happen? I'm home now".

Seungcheol didn't quite buy it, but maybe it was better not to be too overbearing. He watched Jeonghan walk toward the door and disappear inside.

For a moment, Jeonghan peered out the window. And once Seungcheol had vanished into the trees, he yanked the curtain closed, cutting out every single sliver of sunlight.

He moved quickly, going from room to room, pulling every curtain shut until the entire first floor was cloaked in darkness.

He made his way to the kitchen and pulled a cold bottle of water from the fridge. Even after drinking half of it, he felt his strength draining.

He needed something colder.

He rushed down to the basement, where the air was noticeably cooler, and collapsed in a shaded corner.

His breathing was rapid. When he looked at his hand, he saw it begin to pale, turning back to its original grayish hue. He swore under his breath and clenched his fist.

He pulled off his hoodie, then lifted his shirt. His torso was turning gray too, but he couldn't panic.

It had to stay calm to maintain Jeonghan's form. If anything changed, if it's body shifted even a little, they'd all know it wasn't the real Jeonghan.

*

Seungcheol finally made it back to the lake, and once there, he took off his shirt and left it near a tree. 

Some of the guys asked if Jeonghan was okay, and Seungcheol simply replied that he didn't know, but he'd probably be fine soon.

He went to sit down next to Mingyu, who was smoking a cigarette while perched on a rock.

Mingyu noticed him and grabbed the pack, "Want one?" Seungcheol nodded and took it.

They smoked in silence for a few seconds before Mingyu spoke up, "You worried? About Jeonghan, I mean".

Seungcheol exhaled the smoke before answering, "I don't know, I'm more worried about how weird he's been, not just today".

Mingyu frowned, "Weird how?" He asked.

Seungcheol looked at him, "Haven't you noticed... Anything off about him?"

Mingyu shrugged, "Not really? I mean, a few days ago, yeah, he was kind of off, but just because he's not sleeping well. Other than that, he's the same Jeonghan, right?"

Seungcheol stayed quiet as he inhaled again, "Maybe" He muttered a moment later.

He decided to do what Jeonghan had told him, have fun and stop worrying, so he went to enjoy the rest of the day with his friends.

*

After dinner, the sun had just started to set, and the group decided to head back to the house. No one really talked much on the way; everyone was tired after spending almost the entire afternoon at the lake.

Once they got back, they entered one by one. Everything looked normal. Nothing out of place. The curtains were exactly how they had left them before leaving. The only thing missing was Jeonghan.

Hansol looked around, "Where is he?" He asked, referring to Jeonghan, expecting to find him lounging in the living room.

Seungcheol dropped the bag with the towels onto the floor, along with his t-shirt, he refused to put it back on, the heat was unbearable, "I'll go check, maybe he's upstairs" He said, and headed toward the upper floor.

Seungcheol was drying his hair with a towel while glancing around. The balcony was empty, and Jeonghan's bedroom door was shut. He knocked, and a quiet voice from inside answered him.

He opened the door and saw Jeonghan sitting cross-legged in the center of his bed, "Oh, you guys are already back?"

Seungcheol nodded slightly, "Yeah, we figured it was better to start heading back... And then we thought, you were here all alone, so..."

He was about to continue, but stopped when he noticed how Jeonghan wasn't even looking at his face. His gaze was fixed somewhere around Seungcheol's chest. 

He cleared his throat, "So... You feeling better now?"

The blond looked up, "Yeah, I fell asleep, I feel better now" He explained, then moved over slightly, "Sit here".

Seungcheol wasn't sure what his friend wanted, but he closed the door behind him and sat on the bed.

"Did I miss anything?" Jeonghan asked, looking at him. 

Seungcheol shrugged, "Kinda... Chan almost drowned Seungkwan, other than that, all good".

Jeonghan chuckled.

Seungcheol was still thinking about what Jeonghan had said, had he really fallen asleep? It wasn't usually that easy for him, especially in the middle of the day.

"Were you feeling really bad after I left?" Seungcheol asked, turning to face him.

Jeonghan shrugged, "I tried drinking something cold, then I came here, this room's cooler, then I guess I passed out. I woke up just a little while ago, I heard your voices downstairs" He explained.

A brief silence settled over them, then Jeonghan smiled again, "If I asked you to stay here for a bit... Would you?" He asked, tilting his head slightly.

Seungcheol swallowed, "I'm already here by now" He replied casually, though his voice trembled just a bit.

Jeonghan smiled before letting out a small laugh. His head dipped down, and then he rested his forehead, on Seungcheol's shoulder, just in front of it, "That's right".

Seungcheol felt his body tremble, but he tried to keep calm. He could feel Jeonghan's breath and warmth against his skin. He liked it, a lot, but at the same time it was so strange. Jeonghan was strange. 

He would've never done something like this just a few days earlier, especially with Seungcheol half-naked. Jeonghan knew exactly what he was doing, and he was fully aware of it in that moment.

Seungcheol unconsciously raised his hand and began to stroke his hair, "Are you sure you're all right?" He asked quietly, "Maybe you want to rest a bit more?"

Jeonghan kept his head down but slipped his arm around Seungcheol's waist, "Wow, if you want to leave that much, just say it".

Seungcheol furrowed his brows, "No, no... It's just... You're acting strange".

Jeonghan slowly raised his head, their faces were now close, "Yes... I actually still have a bit of a headache" He then shifted, laying back down on the mattress, "Maybe I'll rest a little more... I might come down later... Maybe".

Seungcheol turned to look at him and nodded, "There's everyone downstairs if you need anything" He quickly stood up, slipped out of the room, and closed the door.

He paused in the hallway, resting against the wall, and ran a hand down his face. He felt so strange, he couldn't tell if it was Jeonghan or him.

*

Chan, Seungcheol, Mingyu, Wonwoo, and Joshua were sitting around the table, playing cards.

Chan let out a dramatic groan as he got hit with a plus four card, "Aw, come on! Again? This isn't fair!" He complained, making everyone laugh.

The game went on until Joshua played his last card, securing the win. He stood up with a mischievous smile, "That's it, I win".

Seokmin appeared at the doorway, casually leaning against the frame, "Ah, you're finished? Come on, then... Let's go to our room" He held out his hand, and Joshua slipped his into it as the two walked away together.

One by one, the rest of them began to get up, wishing Seungcheol a good night as he stayed back to gather up the cards.

Once finished, Seungcheol stood up and put the cards away in a drawer. 

It was still early, so as he went up the stairs, he thought he'd just check his phone until he fell asleep. But his plans were interrupted when he passed by the balcony and saw Jeonghan outside, gesturing for him to come out.

Seungcheol swallowed nervously, opening then the door and stepping outside. Without a word, Jeonghan held out a cigarette. Seungcheol sighed, accepted it, and then lit it.

"Didn't you say you were quitting?" He asked, placing a hand against the railing and looking out toward the forest.

Jeonghan shrugged and took a drag, "Every now and then, I think I deserve it".

For a moment, silence fell between them. The two kept their gazes forward, side by side, until Jeonghan turned slightly toward Seungcheol. His voice was softer now, "Did you... Miss me today?"

Seungcheol tightened his grip on the railing, unsure of what to say, "Miss you? You... Just stayed home".

Jeonghan nodded, reluctantly, "I know... But I kept thinking about you" He smiled, "You know, you were kind today... For walking me back here, and for even wanting to make sure I got safely inside, when you had so much fun waiting for you down by the lake".

Seungcheol took a drag, maybe to calm himself, "It's the least I could do... I wanted to make sure you were all right while we were gone" He explained, looking down.

Jeonghan fell silent for a moment, then stepped forward, closing the space between them. His fingertips grazed Seungcheol's wrist, then slowly slid up his arm until they rested on his shoulder. 

Seungcheol held his breath, unsure of what was going to happen, his pulse racing just a little faster.

Jeonghan paused, tilting his head slightly, then placed a hand on Seungcheol's side, turning him so his back was against the railing. Now, there were just a few inches between their bodies.

Seungcheol didn't know how, but he managed to open his mouth, holding the now almost finished cigarette tightly between his fingers, "What... What's wrong?" He asked, confused and embarrassed.

Jeonghan took a slow drag from his cigarette, then smirked as he exhaled the smoke lazily, "You're blushing" He said softly, voice low and teasing, "Does it embarrass you that I notice? Or maybe... It excites you?" He leaned closer, eyes gleaming mischievously, the smoke curling around him.

He moved closer, leaning one hand on the railing beside Seungcheol, "The way you act... You say I'm weird, but you're way weirder than me. Do you like me that much? Me? Really, me?" He tilted his head slightly, enjoying the effect his words had.

Seungcheol's expression was the kind of look you get when someone throws a harsh truth right in your face, shocked, and totally confused. His eyes widened slightly, mouth parted but no words coming out.

Seungcheol tried to look away, but Jeonghan wouldn't let him. He followed him with his gaze, forcing their eyes to lock, "Aw, come on... Don't be embarrassed, you can tell me, after all these years... Just say it, what's the point in keeping it hidden?" He asked quietly. 

And when he let his cigarette drop, he placed a hand on Seungcheol's side, massaging it softly, as if offering support.

Seungcheol's face turned red with embarrassment, luckily it was dark enough that Jeonghan couldn't see it. Maybe he was right. What was the point in hiding something he'd kept to himself for so long? He was an adult, he shouldn't feel ashamed for his own emotions. 

So he drew up whatever courage he had left and nodded quietly, "Yeah. I mean... Yes, I like you" He whispered, still trying to avoid meeting his gaze, this time, Jeonghan let him do it.

There was a moment of silence until Jeonghan let out a small laugh, "And why say it so awkwardly? You know I like you too?" He whispered, leaning in just a little closer to his face.

Seungcheol tightened his grip on the railing behind him, knuckles white, his pulse racing, "Really...?" He whispered, reluctantly turning his gaze back toward Jeonghan, who nodded in affirmation.

Seungcheol couldn't move, not until Jeonghan closed the distance, kissing him softly.

Seungcheol let his cigarette fall and let his eyes drift closed, fully falling into the moment. The kiss stayed gentle,  but when Jeonghan tried to deepen it, adding a bit more pressure, Seungcheol faltered and didn't follow his lead.

Jeonghan broke the kiss briefly, lifting a hand to stroke Seungcheol's hair with his fingertips, a small, affectionate gesture, "What? Did you forget how to kiss someone?" He said softly, not in a mocking tone, but more in a playful, fond way.

Jeonghan pressed his lips back to Seungcheol's, this time with greater urgency. His tongue slid forward, boldly, gliding against Seungcheol's lower lip, then dipping into his mouth. 

Seungcheol's grip on the railing faltered, his knuckles slowly turning back to their natural color as he let go. His hands rested on Jeonghan's hips, then creeping upward, feeling the warmth of his body through the thin fabric of his shirt. 

Jeonghan tasted faintly of smoke, a flavor that made Seungcheol's pulse accelerate. His kisses grew a little messier, a little less cautious, tugging at his lower lip, then deepening as their tongues met. His own hands slid up to cupping Seungcheol's face, tilting it just a bit.

With a rush of courage, Seungcheol let his right hand trail down from Jeonghan's back, following the curve until it rested boldly just above his ass. His grip tightened, pulling their bodies closer together, their chests pressed, their breaths heavy.

Jeonghan broke away just for a moment, resting his forehead against Seungcheol's. Jeonghan took a moment to look at Seungcheol, his red cheeks, his shaky breaths, his lips a little wet with saliva, "You're so cute" Jeonghan whispered, softly stroking his hair.

Jeonghan was so sure of himself, completely composed, while Seungcheol was a mess, letting himself be led. Jeonghan seemed so calm, as if he didn't even need to catch his breath after that kiss, strange, but Seungcheol chose not to dwell on it.

Jeonghan kissed him one last time. He pressed his lips against Seungcheol's, who opened his mouth without thinking too much, wanting to feel Jeonghan kiss him like that again.

Jeonghan pressed his body against Seungcheol's, who let out a soft moan feeling Jeonghan's hips against his, then a hand slid down Seungcheol's back to touch his ass, followed by their slow breaths as their tongues moved together.

Jeonghan then pulled away, letting Seungcheol catch his breath, and stepped back, picking up his cigarettes and lighter, "Do you think you'll be able to sleep tonight without thinking about me too much?" He asked with his usual confident smile.

Seungcheol stayed silent, expecting them to continue, but instead Jeonghan was walking away.

Unsure, he nodded.

Seungcheol took a moment to get some air and then made his way back to his room. The house was starting to grow quiet. 

In his room, Chan was already stretched out on his bed, and as soon as he saw Seungcheol, he put down his phone, "Ah, there you are. Did you smoke?" 

Seungcheol glanced at him before closing the door, then nodded. 

"Sleep?" Chan asked, and Seungcheol agreed, even though he probably wouldn't be able to, at least not right away.

≺≻

Chan had his hands in his hair, still completely worn out and sleepy, his eyes closed, barely able to focus on his food while Seokmin and Joshua were making out in a corner of the kitchen, practically in front of him. 

The youngest slammed his hands down on the table, letting them slide down from his head, "You're making me want to throw up, can't you do that somewhere else?"

Seokmin was the first to break away from Joshua's lips, "You could say it a bit more nicely" He then took Joshua's hand, and the two of them walked away from the kitchen.

Seungcheol came in a moment later, "Wow, that was mean..." He mumbled. 

Chan sighed, "I'm trying to eat, I shouldn't have to watch them make out in front of me".

Seungcheol let out a short laugh, "Are you jealous? Maybe you just miss your girlfriend".

Chan looked up from his plate, "No, we called last night, I don't miss her... Not just after a few days" He lowered his gaze.

Seungcheol smiled warmly, "Yeah, you miss your girlfriend" Chan put down his chopsticks, "Hey, I said I do not".

Seungcheol let it go, he knew Chan could be a nightmare when he was annoyed.

It was strange, though, it was as if relationships were slowly taking over their vacation. Minghao and Junhui were already together, then Seokmin and Joshua, then Seungcheol and Jeonghan, and Chan was thinking about his girlfriend.

Seungcheol wasn't sure, but he hadn't been entirely happy with what had happened the night before with Jeonghan. Yes, he'd liked kissing him, but it felt... Fake.

He hadn't expected their first kiss to be that way, honestly, he hadn't even thought it would happen at all. And even though it had, he didn't feel much of a connection with Jeonghan.

Something was off, but maybe it was just him.

The guys slowly started to wake up, and they spent the morning and after-lunch hours talking, cooking, playing together, that kind of thing.

Seungcheol found himself sitting at the table outside, catching his breath after a soccer match with Soonyoung and Mingyu, he was really worn out. Inside, some of the group were busy tidying up the place.

Jeonghan came out and sat down next to Seungcheol, "It's a bit hot to be playing, isn't it?" He said quietly.

Seungcheol nodded with a small smile, "Yeah... I honestly don't know why I agreed".

Jeonghan nodded in return, then reached up to softly brush his fingers against the back of Seungcheol's neck, "I was thinking of joining... But I think I'll sit this one out".

He turned his gaze toward Mingyu and Soonyoung, who were chasing after the ball as it nearly disappeared into the nearby woods. 

Seizing the moment, he leaned in and pressed a gentle kiss to Seungcheol's lips, just something a little more than a peck, then slowly drew back just as Mingyu and Soonyoung started making their way back toward them.

"Anyway" Jeonghan suddenly changed the subject, "I think Joshua suggested to watch a horror movie tonight, cause he says this place feels kind of spooky, so he thought it would be a good" He kept his gaze down on his hands.

Seungcheol nodded faintly, "Sounds great... Which one?" He asked, trying to keep his tone normal.

Jeonghan shrugged, "Don't know, some of the others had a few options... Are you going to watch it?"

Seungcheol nodded reluctantly, "Yeah... I mean, I don't really have much else to do tonight".

Jeonghan bumped his shoulder against Seungcheol's, "I could keep you busy".

Seungcheol almost choked on his own saliva, "What?" He said, confused, nearly shocked.

Jeonghan let out a small laugh, "Just kidding" He finished with his usual mischievous smile.

Jeonghan already made those kind of jokes, and they made Seungcheol a bit uneasy, but maybe it was just because he was a little shy.

Jeonghan stood up and stretched, "I'm going back inside, it's starting to get hot" He said, then gave Seungcheol a small wave before heading back in.

Seungcheol got up and decided to go and play with his two friends. He still felt the sensation of Jeonghan's lips on his, it was strange, really strange, yet he couldn't help but think about it.

*

The evening came quickly, and after dinner, they all gathered on the ground floor where the TV was. 

They settled on the couches to watch a movie. 

The movie was pretty good, although some fell asleep after the first half hour, worn out by the day. Everyone was silent, except when a few jumped at a scare.

Seungcheol was completely absorbed in the film, until he felt Jeonghan's hand resting on his thigh, slowly moving up and down. 

It might have seemed like Jeonghan was just scared by the film, but that was ridiculous. Jeonghan, afraid of something stupid like a horror film? Obviously not. 

He was up to something, trying to see if he could get a reaction from Seungcheol. 

And he certainly got it, Seungcheol's leg trembled slightly. Jeonghan kept it there, casually gliding up and down.

On the other side of the couch, closer to the TV, Junhui kept yawning, battling his boredom, the movie didn't appeal to him, and neither to his boyfriend, who kept grabbing the remote just to check how much was left. 

After a few minutes, Minghao drew close to Junhui, slipped his arm around his shoulders, and whispered in his ear, "Want to fuck?"

Junhui immediately raised his eyebrows, perking up from his boredom, "Are you crazy? We can't just get up and leave like this" He whispered back, praying nobody else could hear.

Minghao sighed, "You're not even into the movie, we might as well go up and fuck, nobody's going to check on us anyway".

Junhui thought for a moment, then sighed in return. Anything was better than sitting there, waiting for the film to end. 

He nodded, earning a smile from his boyfriend.

"We're going to bed" Junhui said as they made their way up the stairs, without a word from anyone.

"Yeah, sure... To bed" Joshua mumbled under his breath, turning his gaze back toward the TV, thinking much the same as everyone else.

*

Junhui kept thrusting hard into Minghao, over and over, his grip firm on his hips. He could see his boyfriend trembling underneath him, face buried in the pillow to keep his moans from escaping, and the muscles in his back growing tighter with each deep push. 

Junhui tightened his hold, tugging him back just a little, forcing their bodies to connect even more.

Neither of them knew how much time had passed, but by now, the guys downstairs had surely finished their movie and gone to bed, maybe an hour, maybe more, a silence fell over the rest of the house, emphasizing the wet sounds of their movement and their shaky breaths.

Minghao pressed his knuckles into the mattress, his grip faltering, his body growing weak from pleasure. His toes began to curl, his thighs trembled, and he tightened further around Junhui, making him let out a deep, vulnerable moan in response.

Junhui paused briefly to press a soft, reverent kiss to the nape of Minghao's neck, a fleeting moment of tenderness amid their urgency, causing Minghao to growl quietly, "Move... I swear... If you stop now, I'll kill you".

Minghao was normally the silent one, but now he was begging without shame, desperate for release, or maybe just angry.

With a shaky breath, Junhui drew back just a little and began to move again, faster, more deliberate, until Minghao fell over the edge, his body locking up and then shaking beneath him.

The rush was enough to bring Junhui over, and with a few more deep thrusts, he came, filling him completely.

Junhui slowly slipped out, completely spent. Minghao turned slightly, resting on his side, both of them glimmering faintly with a thin sheen of sweat, their breaths heavy and shaky in the dimly lit room.

For a few seconds, Junhui stayed still, kneeling behind Minghao as his hand traced slowly down his spine. 

Minghao was still breathing heavily beneath him, but Junhui's mind was already elsewhere, because something had shifted in the corner of his eye.

His head turned instinctively toward the large glass door that led out to the veranda.

At first, he thought it was just the reflection of movement. A shadow. But then he saw it clearly. A figure.

Someone standing there.

His blood ran cold the moment he recognized the face.

It was Jeonghan.

He was motionless, just outside the glass. Eyes fixed on them. Unblinking. Expressionless.
Almost curious.

Junhui's heart skipped a beat, and for a second he forgot to breathe.

What the fuck? How long had he been there? Why was he even there?

Just earlier, he'd been downstairs, watching the movie with the others, and now he was here, standing outside their room, alone in the dark. Slowly, too slowly, a smile began to form on Jeonghan's lips. Something unsettling. 

Junhui's whole body stiffened.

It wasn't just the fact that Jeonghan was out there. It was the way he was watching them, like he'd seen everything. 

Without saying a word, Junhui pushed himself to his feet and moved toward the window, heart pounding. But just as he reached for the handle, the figure outside stepped to the side, smooth, deliberate, and vanished.

Junhui flung the door open, stepping halfway onto the veranda.

Nothing. Absolutely no one. Only the wind.

He looked around, breathing hard now, from a cold panic that was starting to settle deep in his chest.

A voice behind him broke the silence, "What are you doing? Close the door" Minghao murmured sleepily from the bed, sitting up just a little.

Junhui didn't move. He turned his head slowly toward him, "You didn't see him?" He asked, voice low and tense.

Minghao blinked at him, "See who?"

"Jeonghan" Junhui said immediately, "He was out here, watching us" His voice trembled, barely audible over the sudden quiet.

Minghao's brow furrowed slightly, but didn't answer. And Junhui stood frozen in the doorway, staring into the dark, where something had been. And maybe still was.

Junhui closed the sliding door and made his way back to the bed, grabbing his clothes off the floor and starting to get dressed. 

Minghao shifted slightly, watching him more clearly now, "What are you doing? Where are you going?" He asked, confused, pulling the bedsheet up a bit to cover himself.

"I'm going to see if he's actually asleep or not" Junhui replied as he pulled on his pants and moved toward the bedroom door.

The hallway outside was dark. 

He reached for the light switch and flicked it on, the sudden brightness making the shadows flicker for a second. 

He walked quickly toward Jeonghan's bedroom door, hesitated, and then exhaled deeply before opening it.

The door creaked softly as it swung open. 

Junhui's breathing was still heavy, but for the fear.

Jeonghan was in bed, lying under the covers, eyes closed. His breathing was slow, but too slow. Controlled, it almost looked fake, like always.

Junhui furrowed his brow and stepped forward cautiously until he was standing at the edge of the bed. 

Then he crouched down onto the floor and stared at Jeonghan's face, watching.

That's when he noticed it.

Even with the low lighting from the hallway spilling into the room, he could see clearly now: Jeonghan's face wasn't right. 

It was too smooth, too clean. He didn't even have the moles he used to.

"Jeonghan" Junhui murmured under his breath.

No response.

"Is that really you?" He whispered again.

Still nothing. The body on the bed remained still.

Junhui slowly stood up, stepped back, and closed the bedroom door behind him. He returned quietly to his own room, shutting that door as well. 

Minghao was sitting up now, watching him with concern, "Well?" He asked.

Junhui let out a slow breath, "He's asleep" Which was weird, by Jeonghan.

They didn't say anything else. 

Minghao groaned quietly as he got up, reaching down to grab his boxers and slip them on before walking to the desk. He unscrewed a water bottle and took a few long gulps.

Junhui lay back down on the bed, his head pounding. He tried to calm himself, slow his thoughts. And for a second, it felt like maybe he could.

Until a knock came at the door.

Once, then twice.

Minghao turned to look at it.

"Jun? Can you open the door?" It was Jeonghan's voice.

Minghao glanced at his boyfriend, but before he could move, Junhui talked and stopped him, "Don't open that door".

Minghao furrowed his brow, "It's just Jeonghan" He stepped closer to the door, but Junhui, still lying on the bed, talked again, "Please".

Before Junhui could even plead further, Minghao's hand was already on the handle, and he slowly pulled the door open.

Jeonghan's gaze locked onto Junhui, almost angry, his eyes dark as night. 

Then, his face lit up, "Ah, there you are, I thought it was strange, I heard some noises in the hallway" He said, a small smile creeping onto his lips, "Did you come into my room? I heard the door closing" He explained, scratching the back of his neck.

Minghao glanced at Junhui, whose breath was quickened, fear plain in his eyes, he wasn't even trying to hide it.

Junhui clenched his hands tightly on the sheet, unable to say a word. 

Just Jeonghan's gaze terrified him. No, that wasn't Jeonghan, not at all. 

Jeonghan had never been like that. It was something else, something he couldn't quite place, but it looked so much like him it was almost unbearable.

Minghao stepped in, breaking the silence, "He said he saw you a little while ago" He explained.

Jeonghan tilted his head, a slow smile spreading across his face, "Me? Impossible, I was sleeping deeply until now" He said smoothly.

"You never sleep" Junhui snapped, irritated, but the tremor in his voice betrayed his fear.

That dark, dangerous look returned to Jeonghan's eyes "Maybe I finally found it, the perfect sleep" He murmured, "And someone interrupted it".

Junhui swallowed hard. 

Before anything else could happen, Jeonghan smiled again, a smile that didn't reach his eyes. 

"Okay, well... Looks like you two were busy, I'll leave you be and try to sleep again" He said, then slowly walked away, still wearing that unsettling grin.

Minghao closed the door and turned to Junhui, "Happy now? He was just sleeping, you imagined the whole thing".

Junhui swallowed hard. He hadn't imagined anything, he was sure of it.

Minghao lay back down beside him, then switched off the light, curling up to sleep as if nothing had happened.

But Junhui knew one thing for certain: falling asleep wouldn't be so easy for him.