Behind Closed Doors

Part 1

Life as Han Jisung from Stray Kids was pretty great.

You might think it wasn't, that it just looked that way from the outside, but that didn't really apply to Jisung.

From his own perspective, he was a handsome young guy with a brilliant brain and a really good body who, if his insecurities or anxiety didn't get in the way, usually did great at whatever he set out to do. Anything other than some sports maybe.

He worked and lived with a group of people he loved, made a lot of money doing something he was passionate about, and had tons of fans. It couldn't get much better than that.

Well, it could... if they won more awards and got even more famous. They were working on that.

But lately, something felt... off.

A vague emptiness lingered in the back of Jisung's mind, though he couldn't quite place why.

It wasn't about being busy or not having enough time for himself.

It wasn't about lack of love in his busy schedule either. He was living his dreams and was more than satisfied with his loneliness.

He had been good with everyone lately. His family, the members, everyone.

If this had been back in their pre-debut days, he probably would've blamed whatever this feeling was on those random fights he used to have with Hyunjin. But Hyunjin had become one of the reasons he laughed and had fun so much these past few years, one of the people who made things lighter without even trying.

Sometimes he wondered if maybe his anxiety was creeping back in, but it didn't feel the same. If anything, he just found himself missing their fans more than usual, wanting to see them, talk to them, feel that connection again.

The songs he'd been writing lately sounded right to him. Which, considering how perfectionist he could get, meant a lot. And dancing felt easier too, his body looser from all the hours he'd been spending at the gym.

Maybe it was about Minho.

Or maybe Jisung was overthinking everything like he always did.

Jisung was Minho's favorite dongsaeng.

Or at least, that's what he liked to believe.

He considered himself Minho's best friend, soulmate, and everything Minho needed in a person—for a lifetime of never-ending peace and happiness.

Minho wasn't the only friend Jisung had in the group, but he was definitely the only one who made him feel this kind of important and seen. Not because he paid attention to him, not exactly. Chan was known for being caring in the industry, and honestly, that reputation wasn't wrong. Felix, too, was just naturally touchy with all his friends. Jisung probably flirted the most with Felix and Hyunjin out of everyone. Well... after Minho. But that was normal because Minho was the biggest flirt in the group anyway.

The thing that made it feel different with Minho was that he just... didn't do this with people. He rarely paid this much attention to anyone. It was rare for him to let someone joke around with him this much. Rare for him to just go along with something without being the one who started it. Rare for him to talk to someone this much or care for someone like he cared about Jisung. Minho didn't let anyone get away with as much as he let Jisung. And it wasn't like Jisung had done anything in particular to earn those privileges. He had just... kept being Jisung. And apparently, that had been enough for Minho to feel like he was someone different or special.

Maybe it was after seeing that fanart.

That hyper-realistic, too detailed fanart, depicting him and Minho, kissing.