The Arrangement - HyunMinLix

Chapter 2.

Third Person POV (Hyunjin)

Miserable

That's how Hyunjin felt when he heard the words uttered by their manager.

He had woken up happy today, ready to record his part for Charmer and then bug Minho to go get some food with him. He had even rehearsed his dialogues and dramatic exclamations in case Minho declined.

The entire morning, he had been in an unexplainable epiphany, whistling tunelessly and being silly with Felix and Jeongin. He had recorded his rap in Charmer effortlessly, and had even made some changes in his part of Muddy Water. After the recording was successfully done, he had escorted Minho, Jeongin and Seungmin to the dance practice room, as instructed by their manager during the drive.

Chan, Changbin and Jisung had followed shortly, apparently done with the assembling of the song. Felix had left for his scheduled live right before the recording, and knowing him Hyunjin didn't expect the boy to be back for a couple of hours.

However, all his euphoric demeanor dropped when their manager stepped forward and started speaking.

"You guys have already been informed that your lease to the dorm is up. As instructed beforehand, us, the management staffs have found you new dorms to live in. The division is BangChan, Changbin, Hyunjin and Jisung in one dorm, for obvious purposes, while Minho, Yongbok, Seungmin and Jeongin are in the other." Hyunjin's heart fell straight out of his chest to his toes in despair.

"If you have any objections or inconvenience, do inform us. However, I surely do not expect anything of such sort." And with that friendly smile, their manager stepped back to give them space.

Those words....

Those last words were what was holding Hyunjin back from screaming and whining in protest.

No...

He rebuked himself.
You will do no such thing.
Invalidating the others' feelings for his own selfish need was not what Hyunjin had in his mind.

With a sigh, the poor boy tuned out his members excited chatters and trudged back to the couch, plopping down on the floor beside it. Why he did that despite having the couch in reach was something Hyunjin didn't know himself.

He was aware of the younger ones piling on the couch beside him, and Changbin sitting in front of him but he did not participate in the conversations. Meekly, the boy glanced around the room for a glimpse of his crush, and found Minho and Chan standing in the far corner beside the speakers.

With furrowed eyes, Hyunjin watched them cautiously. It seemed like Minho was incredibly stressed, which was not something new. Lee Minho was one anxious man. He was the kind whose love language was an act of service. Taking care of his members was a nature to him and Hyunjin could see right through his problems.

The responsibility of the three younger members was pressuring the elder, Hyunjin could see it in his tight shoulders and slouching position. He kept staring at them, not even realizing the entrance of Felix until the freckled boy was already sitting on Jisung's lap. Shaking himself out of his stupor, Hyunjin turned towards Felix, noticing the same anxious energy around the younger boy.

So when his members started getting chaotic and loose, he joined in, hoping to pull the blonde boy out of his distressing thoughts. It worked, of course. Despite being exasperated by the lack of a good answer, Felix visibly relaxed which was a relief to Hyunjin.

For someone as fragile as Hyunjin, taking care of the younger members was one of his first priorities. He knew it was stupid, they weren't even an year younger than him except for Jeongin, but for Hyunjin with no siblings, it was a blessing to have them in his life.

The older members fed into his innocence and childish energy while the younger members made him mature and protective. Stray Kids completed Hwang Hyunjin and he was upset over the fact that they were getting kinda separated now.

'Its ok' He told himself 'Things are not gonna change over something as impractical as dorm arrangements'

But that insecure part of his brain kept screaming that something will vary.

Shoving away his vain thoughts, he instantly straightened up when he noticed Chan and Minho coming their way. Judging by the dull look on Minho's face, it was clear that he wasn't exactly satisfied with the talk but he was also willing to work on it. Chan, however, had a huge smile on his face.

"So? What are you guys' thoughts on this?" He asked, taking a seat beside Changbin while Minho sat behind Hyunjin.

"Its great, hyung. I can't wait to have a room all to myself without having to clean up regular mess." Jeongin was practically glowing with happiness. The snide remark from the smiley boy got Jisung, his roommate, very faux offended. They obviously started bickering, which continued into a full blown squabble and laughter.

Hyunjin leaned back into Minho's chest at the opportunity, smiling at his members. He could hear Minho quietly chuckling behind him, his breath tickling against Hyunjin's neck, as he wrapped his arms around the taller's waist comfortably.

And with that, Hyunjin felt all his worries and insecurities wash away.

No matter what happens, Stray Kids will never change.