a/n: this fic was originally a one-shot that i wrote years ago. please enjoy this new, edited version ❤️
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It's a sweltering hot summer evening following one of the hottest days on record, and Kihyun is lying on his back on a still-perfectly-made hotel bed with the AC blasting so strongly that he swears he can see frost creeping up along the inside of the windows from the corner of his vision. His eyes are open but not looking at anything in particular, Kihyun just staring ahead at the walls vacantly, and his skin is still warm and flushed from the hot night air outside.
The group had come straight from the airport to the hotel that they'll be staying at for the next few nights as they complete their schedules abroad, and though Kihyun is usually an active, restless kind of person, right now he's really enjoying just lying here, the cold air soothing, refreshing, truly an oasis for his overheated body. In a line of work where they're always constantly moving, it's a relief to be able to pause for a moment, to be still in time and to just exist without anywhere to go, without anywhere to rush to, to be able to just lie here and breathe for once, especially when Kihyun is so, so very tired.
He's stripped down from his airport attire to just a t-shirt and shorts, his feet bare and hanging off the edge of the queen-sized bed, his lips parted as he breathes slowly and deeply in an effort to more quickly cool himself down. His head rests on a mountain of decorative pillows and his arms feel heavy and lifeless on either side of him. He's exhausted and aching down to his bones and it feels like he's melting into the mattress. Thankfully, they have the evening off before they begin nearly a week's worth of hectic schedules that would begin early tomorrow morning.
Upon arrival to their shared room, Minhyuk, Kihyun's roommate as usual, had dumped his luggage unceremoniously onto the ground and had claimed the first shower within seconds of stepping through the door, citing his two-and-a-half-week seniority of age. Before Kihyun could protest or even get his shoes off, Minhyuk had already cleared the room, stripped naked, and locked the bathroom door behind him, and Kihyun just didn't have the energy to fight it.
It's been about twenty minutes now and Minhyuk is still in there–Kihyun can hear him singing loudly and off-key over the sound of the rushing water– and he's been rooming with Minhyuk long enough to know that when the singing starts, he'll be in there at least another twenty minutes. So Kihyun just sighs and does his best to block out all sound and all light and all of the fatigue seeping into his body. He tries instead to focus only on the soft hotel blanket beneath him and the wonderfully cold air on his skin.
And soon, he's right on the edge of dozing off, all of his limbs feeling so heavy and sore, and he wonders how he'll ever muster the energy to make it to the shower or even under the covers of the bed, wonders if he'll ever be able to even move from this very spot ever again.
Suddenly, a loud, steady knock at their door rips through the air, beating at the oversensitivity in Kihyun's head and making him wince. He's very tempted to just ignore it, to remain still and silent until whoever it is gives up and goes away, but something about the knock tells him that it's Hoseok, and if there's one person that Kihyun is willing to fight through his exhaustion for, even when his whole body is begging for rest, it's Hoseok.
With a groan, Kihyun rolls over onto his side and then drags himself to sit up. He sits there on the bed gripping the sheets tight for a few moments as he blinks the focus back into his eyes, then finally gets onto his feet and stumbles over to the door. When he pulls it open, he's greeted with the sight of Hoseok looking absolutely stunning, all despite the fact that they've just gotten there following a long day of travel and Hoseok hasn't showered yet either.
Hoseok has changed out of his airport clothes to shorts, flip-flops, and a sleeveless undershirt with a plunging neckline that shows off the hard lines of his chest as well as his spectacular biceps that Kihyun personally spends way too much time thinking about, in particular how they feel when wrapped around him in a tight embrace. Kihyun notes too how Hoseok's hair looks soft and shiny and his eyes bright and alive, and how he's practically glowing with that gorgeous smile of his.
