You Rock My World

Who's talking about me?

"Woah, why is it so dark in here? Turn a light on!"

Hongjoong looked up towards the voice but found he couldn't make out the figure in the dark. The dark. Why was it so dark? Was it really that late?

He didn't have time to check before bright fluorescents filled the room and he was blinded.

"Ow! A little warning would've been nice!" he groaned, blinking his vision back.

"I thought you'd be ready to go already. We're late! So no time for warning, you need to get ready."

Hongjoong finally made out the face to see Jongho with his arms folded, shaking his head.

"Ready...for what? It's only—"

Hongjoong checked his laptop to see the time and his eyes almost popped out of his head. It was 7:45! They were supposed to be at dinner already!

"Aish—why didn't you come get me sooner!?"

Hongjoong scrambled off the bed, dashing to the bathroom to fix his hair.

"I thought you were already there but when I arrived you weren't. So I came back to get you. You should be grateful I didn't just let you miss it," Jongho sighed.

"Thank you...I guess. Okay I'm good enough let go.

Hongjoong wished he could look a little less disheveled but weighing a cute outfit with the consequence of being an extra fifteen minutes late, he decided it was better to just go.

Jongho led him back to the banquet and he tried his best not to seem flustered as he made his way in. He looked around and spotted Seonghwa and he could already feel the guilt creeping up in him. Especially when he saw that he'd saved him a seat.

They rushed over to the table and Hongjoong took his seat.

"I'm so sorry Hwa I totally lost track of time I swear I didn't mean to stay in there all day—"

"It's okay, you're here now," Seonghwa smiled. And it honestly felt genuine. He wasn't mad??

"It's not, and I'm sorry—"

"Really, it's fine. I got to meet a lot of new people and, now I can finally introduce you," Seonghwa said and Hongjoong could see the sweet excitement in his eyes. He really wasn't mad.

Why did that make Hongjoong a little...sad?

He shook it off, knowing he was in no position to feel pity about himself so he listened to Seonghwa as he introduced all of the people sitting at the table.

"It's nice to finally meet you, Hongjoong! And don't worry, Chan's still in the studio recording so you're not even close to the last person to arrive," Felix smiled and Hongjoong felt warmth wash over him at the sight. It was as if the boy radiated sunshine.

"Let me guess, he's the leader?" Jeongin laughed and Changbin and Felix spun to face him, shaking their heads.

"Actually—I'm only one of the leaders. Seonghwa and I are co-leaders," Hongjoong smiled, wrapping an arm around Seonghwa. He could feel how his shoulders had tensed.

Shit. He had let his slip pass before but he was probably changing his mind now.

"Oh I'm sorry—so just one of you writes music and the other—"

Seungmin put a hand over Jeongin's mouth, apologizing for his stupidity.

"It's okay, it's pretty new to us too. We both share the duties equally," Hongjoong said, looking to Seonghwa. Seonghwa nodded back, but he looked upset.

Hongjoong pulled his hand back and let their fingers intertwine under the table cloth, trying to read Seonghwa's eyes.

Seonghwa seemed surprised but he curled his fingers back around Hongjoong's. Hongjoong let his thumb run over the back of his hand, turning back to the conversation.

"We're just waiting on the other two and then we'll start eating," Hyunjin said sheepishly, looking around for where they could possibly be.

"Two? Who's the other member?" Hongjoong asked.

"Lee Know, right?"

Seonghwa had remembered the names and knew one hadn't been mentioned.

"Who's talking about me?"

Seonghwa froze as the door opened to the banquet hall. Something about it felt familiar.

"Seonghwa, he's been doing his research and he was excited to meet the last two members of Stray Kids," Wooyoung teased, turning to give Seonghwa a playful elbow.

Seonghwa turned to meet the member but immediately froze. Hongjoong felt his hand pull away, dropping Hongjoong's to his side.

Hongjoong turned, unsure of what could have caused him to tense up like that.

Lee Know locked eyes with Seonghwa and Hongjoong could've sworn he saw a flash of recognition. But it faded as soon as it had arrived and he continued in, moving to sit in an empty seat next to Jisung.

"Really? What did you find out from your research?" he grinned, lifting an eyebrow.

Hongjoong waited for Seonghwa to speak but his face was bright red and he seemed to be at a loss for words.

"There wasn't a whole lot, he just got excited since you all debuted around the same time as us. I'm Hongjoong," Hongjoong tried to save him from the conversation, extending a hand to Lee Know.

"Minho," he responded, but even as they shook hands, Lee Know's eyes stayed locked on Seonghwa.

Hongjoong didn't like it.

Not one bit.