"Friends" | Kim Jinhong + Shim Hongseob (2hong)

Part Two

    It was decided that Hongseob would room with Jinhong, and Changsun would room with Jeonguk and Hui (while Cory and Kisu were already rooming). It made the youngest nervous at the prospect of having to be away from his close friend, the only one he felt comfortable enough to really talk to.

    “That’s your bed, Hongseob-ssi,” Jinhong said, showing him the room. “Sorry my side is a mess, I haven’t had the time to clean it.”

    He began picking up thrown-about clothing, shoving a pair of shoes under his bed, but Hongseob stopped him with a hand on his arm.

    “It’s fine,” he reassured, a soft grin pulling at his lips.

    Jinhong let out a soft “oh,” dropping what was in his hands. “Well, would you like some help unpacking?” he offered instead, with a look at the suitcase the other had pulled behind him.

    He nodded. “Please,” he agreed, putting the suitcase on his bed.

    The next one or two hours was spent putting stuff away and organizing. Throughout this, Jinhong kept Hongseob entertained by telling him jokes and crazy stories that had the younger smiling. He even laughed, to Jinhong’s surprise.

    That has to be the cutest laugh I’ve ever heard, thought Jinhong, watching the other with a smile. For some reason, he couldn’t take his eyes off of him ― it was as if he was ice, and Hongseob was the sun that melted him.

    It was there Changsun found them, Hongseob bending over with his shoulders shaking, Jinhong staring at the other with a grin tugging at his lips. The oldest knocked on the door lightly, unable to keep the smile off of his face as the others turned to look at him. He was glad his best friend had found someone he could relax with.

    “Cory-ssi wanted me to tell you that they’re going to be putting on a movie,” Changsun spoke. “You can join, if you’d like.”

    Jinhong glanced at his year-mate and roommate, asking, “Do you want to?”

    Hongseob ― clearly surprised Jinhong had even bothered asking him ― nodded minutely. “Sure,” he murmured, though the ghost of a smile pulled his lips upward.

    “Alright, come on then, lovebirds,” Changsun teased, smirking and darting away before the two could react.

    Once Hongseob realized what he implied, heat spread up from his neck and onto his cheeks. He didn’t dare glance at Jinhong (who was also extremely flustered; he was, however, smiling), choosing instead to dash after his hyung and hit him upside the head.

    “Yah!” cried Changsun. “What was that for?”

    “For being a jerk,” Hongseob answered breezily, walking past him and into the kitchen to grab a bottle of water.

    “Yah!” Changsun repeated, following him. “I’m your hyung!”

    “I know,” the shorter boy said, pausing to take a drink. “It doesn’t mean you act like it, though.”

    “Shim Hongseob! You little-” the older boy cut himself off, moving forward to put his best friend in a chokehold.

    “What’s happening here?” a voice questioned from the kitchen entryway. The two recognized it as Jeonguk, who stood there with an expression bearing amusement.

    Changsun said, “Hongseob-ah is being rude,” at the same time Hongseob said, “Changsun hyung is a sneaky snake.”

    They both looked at each other and burst out laughing, collapsing on top of one another while Jeonguk looked on, glad that Hongseob was finally starting to open up after being closed off for the whole day.

    Jeonguk grabbed a bottle of water and left while the two dancers untangled themselves.

    “I’ll be in the living room,” Changsun told the other, swiftly walking out, past an entering Jinhong.

    “Ah, hey, Hongseob-ssi,” Jinhong greeted softly, heading to one of the cupboards to pull out a box which looked suspiciously like popcorn.

    “You can drop the honorifics, Jinhong-ah,” Hongseob said shyly, blushing as his year-mate turned to look at him in surprise.

    “Are you sure?” the older man asked, his eyes lighting up with something akin to hope. “I don’t want to make you feel uncomfortable.”

    “It’s okay,” he reassured. “Out of all the members, I trust you the most, besides Changsun hyung.”

    “Aw, thank you, Hongseob-ah,” Jinhong murmured, feeling his heart skip a beat. Why was this man making him feel this way? “I’ll meet you in the living room, okay? Kisu hyung told me to make some popcorn for the movie, but I’ll be done in a few minutes.”

    Hongseob nodded, walking out to join the others.

***

    The movie that was chosen turned out to be a horror movie, a fact that Hongseob absolutely detested. The other members were around him, either on the floor or in chairs and couches, with Jinhong and him sharing the loveseat, a blanket shared between them.

    A sudden jump scare scared the living daylights out of Hongseob, and he instinctively clung on to the thing closest to him ― which was, unfortunately, Jinhong.

    “You okay?” said man whispered, trying not to disturb the others. He wrapped an arm around the younger, preventing him from pulling away, which he was in the middle of doing.

    “Y-yeah,” Hongseob stammered, heart beating fast from both the jump scare and the physical contact.

    The two stayed like that for the rest of the movie ― though neither of them were actually paying attention, too engrossed in their thoughts of each other.