BUBBLE TEA [JOHNNY • TEN]

🧋7. the couch surfer🧋

"JAEHYUN?!"

The man in front of Johnny smiled goofily and looked at him. His hands were in the pockets of his old letterman jacket and his dimples flashed as he grinned like an idiot. All he had was a backpack on his back and his clothes; an old jacket, white shirt that surprisingly adorned no stains, a pair of expensive sneakers with scuff marks on them, and ripped jeans bleached to hell and back.

"Jaehyun's here?" Before Johnny could even ask what Jaehyun was doing here, Mark heard his name and shouted from his room, followed by a happy squeal.

"Dude... I thought you left for Australia a year ago! The hell are you doing here?" Johnny asked in pure shock. He hadn't heard from his little cousin in so long and was surprised that he's standing here on the family home's doorstep instead of in Sydney.

"Me and Rosé broke up..." Jaehyun clicked his tongue and sighed. "She kicked me out too. Turns out she's not even into dudes. I'm not mad, though. Just a little upset considering she led me on for... years." He pouted and Johnny nodded solemnly. It was completely understandable for him to be upset and have nowhere to go, considering he'd banked his whole life on Rosé's. But he understood, some people just took longer to realize things like this than others.

"Jaehyun! Hi." Mark waved, blank faced as his eyes darted around and he slipped through the door to the porch, frowning when he didn't see anything or anyone else.

"Markie? Everything okay, dude?" Johnny asked, Mark narrowing his eyes at Jaehyun.

"Where's Nana?" Mark asked, peeking his head back up and around. Jaehyun waved to him and clicked his tongue.

"Hell if I know. Usually, he stays with his boyfriend and his boyfriend's mom. When he's not at the hospital, of course." Jaehyun shrugged and looked back at Johnny. "I mean, That's how it was a year ago. Haven't seen him, but I call sometimes."

"You don't call us." Mark looked Jaehyun in his eyes and Johnny shot him a dirty look for being so blunt about it. Jaehyun ruffled his hair, offering up a half-hearted apology and Mark huffed in annoyance, slinking back inside.

Johnny looked at him and raised an eyebrow. Jaehyun smiled warmly at Mark, then back up to Johnny. "So... you decided to visit us because Rosé dumped you? Is that it?" He asked, tone not unkind. Jaehyun looked at his feet, expensive sneakers digging into the wood of the porch.

"That's the thing, I'm not sure it's a visit... I mean, can I stay here?" He asked, everything clicking for Johnny. It made sense now that Jaehyun would show up out of the blue. It was his house as much as it was Johnny's and Mark's and he needed to get back on his feet, considering he left, well, everything in Australia.

"Not going to Connecticut?" Johnny put his hands in his pockets and leaned against the doorframe. His aunt- Jaehyun and Jaemin's mother -bought a house in Connecticut a few years back before she passed, but it was left abandoned because well, no family was there to upkeep it. From what Johnny heard, it was still undamaged, but Jaehyun shook his head for whatever reason.

Johnny bit his cheek and looked at Jaehyun, head conflicting with his heart. He supposed in the end that Jaehyun could help around the house and maybe buy groceries or something. And that Jaemin could stay with them too, if need be.

"You can stay. I need a little help with Mark, anyways. He's at this weird teenage stage where..." Johnny paused and opened the door wider, letting Jaehyun in. The sun had set since Jaehyun arrived and the oldest noticed how dark it was outside. "I'll tell you inside, man."

A/N: Filler chapter, but Jaehyun is here for a reason. I want a perspective of someone who definitely does not know how to handle an autistic person and for Johnny to then teach him.

Also, we're gonna get a glimpse into what school is like for Mark, too. Hang in there, more exciting chapters are coming! And more Ten! 💚

- Max