Light rain pattered against the building, a calm yet steady presence to distract Felix from his thoughts.
The time was rather late at night, around eleven or so, if Felix had to guess. With nothing particularly interesting to do, as he'd already finished the manga he'd gotten two days prior, he laid down on the couch, trying to take a nap despite not being tired.
Hyunjin had been gone for a few hours, and Felix almost would've found it weird had the boy not been used to it by now. The elder would often disappear for hours on end, whether to get a new book, fill his car with gas, or do whatever he needed done. Felix didn't bother to question him every time.
It wasn't for another twenty minutes or so that the door to the motel room swung open, a tall boy stepping into the room carrying multiple items in his arms.
"Feliiiix," the dark haired boy called out as he kicked the door shut with his heel, dumping what appeared to be a large brown briefcase on the kitchen table along with a few bagged items.
"You better be awake, I've got something to show you~"
Felix sat up, staring at the items across the room with a mild interest as Hyunjin took off his jacket, shaking some of the rain off of himself.
"Where have you been?" Felix asked for probably the first time ever, genuinely wondering this time what he'd been up to.
Hyunjin only gave him a vague smile.
"Come here, I think you'll wanna see this."
Felix gave him a wary look before standing and padding over towards him, placing a hand gingerly on the briefcase-looking item.
"Open it," Hyunjin encouraged, and Felix did so, lifting the lid to reveal a strange looking mechanism. It displayed multiple knobs and buttons, had a large empty circular space, and a sort of metal arm connected to a small needle.
Felix furrowed his eyebrows.
"Is this a..."
"Yep!" Hyunjin cut him off excitedly, before he could even answer. "It's a record player. And look what I got for free with it!" he said, reaching into one of the large bags he'd brought. He pulled out a stack of large, paper album sleeves, each one presumably containing a vinyl record inside.
Felix glanced between all of the items. "How much did this cost? And... why?"
Hyunjin didn't give an answer, instead holding the stack of vinyl sleeves in his hands.
"Give me a number from one to ten," he said, Felix rolling his eyes at the usual game.
"Five," Felix responded, and Hyunjin pulled the fifth album out from the middle of the stack, gently slipping out the record itself and placing it onto the turntable.
He couldn't help but poke at the multiple buttons and knobs on the thing, wondering what each did. Felix had always found record players kind of cool, but had never gotten the chance to use one.
Hyunjin apparently had finished setting it up as he placed the needle down on the record, before switching it on.
The sound of an old slow song began to play, its soft instrumentals bringing a smile to Hyunjin's face.
"I always loved this song," he admitted. "It's probably my favorite one to dance to."
Felix listened to the tune for a moment, hearing the singer join in on the track, a famous one who he'd definitely heard before but didn't know the name of.
"Dance...?" Felix questioned, hearing its calm melody. "Not very upbeat, is it?"
"Slow dancing, silly. Like the waltz," Hyunjin flicked him on the shoulder.
"Ah," Felix replied, a little embarassed at not having thought of it. "You know how to do that?"
"What, you don't?" Hyunjin asked incredulously, seeing Felix gain a sort of deer-in-the-headlights look.
"Really? It's easy."
"Yeah... maybe for you," he replied as Hyunjin stepped out into the open space between the kitchen and living area.
"Come on," he gestured for Felix to join him. "I'll teach you. It's really easy, I promise!"
Felix hesitated, taking a moment to really process the offer.
"You sure...?" he questioned. "Doesn't it need to be with... a girl?"
Hyunjin gave him a confused look. "You're short enough, if that's what you mean?" he said, totally not addressing what Felix was actually hinting at.
The younger only sighed, accepting the circumstances and walking near to Hyunjin.
"So?" he began. "What am I supposed to do?"
Hyunjin gave him a grin. "Wow. Has no one ever invited you to a ball?"
Felix lightly glared at him.
"Now why in the hell would someone—"
The elder gently cleared his throat, as if preparing to get into the act.
"Well, first and foremost, it's polite to ask the other person, so..."
Hyunjin gave a dramatic bow, before offering out his left hand towards the younger.
"May I have this dance, my dear?" he spoke with an amused grin.
Felix bit back a smile at this, thinking maybe, it wouldn't hurt to play along.
"Of course," he replied, placing his right hand on the elder's.
"Yeah, exactly!" Hyunjin praised as if the response weren't common sense. "Now, for more formal dancing, you've gotta know the arm positions."
Felix felt a little heat rising to his face as the elder rested his right hand just above Felix's waist.
"Put your left up here," Hyunjin instructed calmly, glancing at his own shoulder to indicate where. His words were steady and methodical, making Felix wonder briefly if he was the only one overthinking it a little.
Once Felix's left hand rested upon Hyunjin's shoulder, the elder held their other hands out to the side, still clasped together.
"That's all. Isn't it simple?" he asked, the younger still unable to find the words to reply.
"The steps can be as easy as you want them to be," Hyunjin stated, gently encouraging Felix to look down. "Try following me. I'm gonna step twice to your right, then twice to your left. Okay?"
Felix nodded, despite the bubbles of anxiousness he still felt in his chest. The older boy took two steps to the right, as told, and Felix carefully followed him. For the steps left, Felix tried to match the other's timing.
"Right!" Hyunjin complimented. "Now, just do that a hundred times, and boom! That's slow dancing!"
Felix let out a soft laugh at this.
"Okay, fine. I guess you were right, it is kinda easy."
With the song still playing, Hyunjin led the boy's steps in time to the rhythm, matching the dance's pace. Felix couldn't help but stare up at him, not used to being this close.
To be honest, this was the kind of situation right out of his wildest dreams. Being in the arms of a pretty boy, slow dancing to an old love song... it was the exact type of thing he would yearn for.
Hyunjin turned, making eye contact with the younger for what felt like an eternity before glancing away.
"You're better than a lot of people I know," he commented offhandedly. "Most of them kinda just do the prom dancing thing."
Felix blinked.
"I haven't been to one."
"You know," Hyunjin tried. "Like, the..."
He sighed, deeming it better to show than to tell. He grabbed both of Felix's arms, placing them over his own shoulders, before resting both of his hands on the boy's waist.
"This," he said. "This kind."
Felix felt his grip on reality slip away from him for a brief moment.
"Ah, yeah..." he muttered, the other still calmly swaying him in time to the music. Up this close, he found himself focusing on a little beauty mark right below Hyunjin's eye, which he'd never paid much attention before.
"Have you always had that...?" Felix wondered out loud, making the elder raise an eyebrow.
"What?" Hyunjin questioned.
"Oh," Felix spoke, embarassed at being caught off guard. "Nothing."
Hyunjin seemed to want to ask, but chose not to pry further. Instead, he returned to their original, proper dance position, composing himself before continuing with his lesson.
"You think you're ready to try out the box step?" he questioned.
Felix only took a deep breath.
The slow rhythm of the song set a sort of comfortable tone in the room. As Hyunjin taught the simple step routine and gave tips to Felix, he almost didn't feel nervous anymore... even when accidentally stomping on Hyunjin's feet a couple times.
"Ahh, let's try something different," the long haired boy said after a while, briefly leaving the other's hold in order to flip over the vinyl on the record player.
"You heard this before?" Hyunjin asked as a song began to play, one that Felix instantly recognized.
Felix rolled his eyes at the question.
"Who doesn't know Dancing Queen?" he asked rhetorically, knowing it was probably one of the most famous 70's songs ever.
Hyunjin only laughed at this, taking Felix by the hand and gingerly leading him towards the center of the room. Back in position, although a bit more energetic now, he didn't have to lead too strongly, as the younger already knew the patterns of the song.
Caught up in the music's joyful rhythm, and cracking jokes to one another every so often, Felix barely reacted in time when the elder announced out of nowhere:
"Lix, let's do a spin."
"Huh—?" Felix barely spoke before Hyunjin brought their intertwined hands up and over his head, twirling the boy around without warning.
Felix couldn't help but start laughing at this, in a state of disoriented yet happy shock.
"Why?!" he blurted out, despite his giggly tone.
Hyunjin gave a shrug and a smile as he rested his arms on the younger's shoulders.
"That would've looked prettier if you were in a skirt," he excused it, not really helping at all.
To call the moment a whirlwind would have been an understatement. In Felix's eyes, it felt like being caught up in more of a wave, unable to do anything but ride it out for as long as it lasted.
A sense of indescribable contentment fell upon him, as he still laughed at Hyunjin's stupid jokes or made the wrong dance step.
It felt as if he was genuinely enjoying himself, for once. The last few weeks, while littered with their small moments of joy, hadn't quite given him a true sense of peace yet... but this comfortable, natural pace made him sure that this was where he was meant to be right now.
After a while, Hyunjin glanced across the room, slightly interrupting the pattern the two had fallen into as he stood still to read something.
"One sec!" Hyunjin let go of the other, dashing over to the kitchen and opening their fridge.
Felix lingered behind him, watching the elder with a questioning amusement.
The boy pulled out something that looked like a dark bottle of wine, cork sealing the top of it.
The younger gave him a wide eyed stare. "Is that alcohol???" he inquired, with Hyunjin only chuckling at the words.
He got out two champagne glasses from the cabinet, setting them on the counter.
"No," he answered as he popped the bottle open. "It's just sparkling juice. I'm not old enough to buy real wine."
Felix gave a dumb smile as the boy poured two equal cups, passing one over to him. Yet, as Felix raised the glass to take a sip, Hyunjin quickly grabbed his wrist, stopping him.
"Wait," Hyunjin said. "Not yet. Trust me."
A silence ensued as Hyunjin glanced back over across the room. Felix turned his head, wondering just what the hell the elder was looking at, and spotted a clock on the wall.
"What are we waiting for...?" Felix asked, right as he saw the hands of the clock shift, signaling it had struck midnight.
The long haired boy raised his glass, clinking it against Felix's in a toast. And just as Felix gave him a questioning glance...
"Happy birthday," Hyunjin wished sincerely, a warm smile painted across his face.
All Felix could do was blink. Those were the last words he'd expected to hear, and it took him a moment to even think about how to react.
He immediately abandoned his drink on the counter, practically throwing himself at the elder boy and trapping him in a tight hug.
"You remembered!" Felix squeaked out against Hyunjin's shirt, feeling said boy's laughter through his chest.
"Even I forgot about it."
"I promised, didn't I?" Hyunjin squeezed him back. "Sorry I couldn't do more. This was all I could afford."
"Dummy," Felix chided. "This was more than enough. Thank you," he said as the taller gently ruffled his hair.
A buzz of giddiness took ahold of him as he let go, taking his first sip of the fake-wine the elder had bought.
"Hey," Felix commented. "This is actually kinda good?"
"Mhmm," Hyunjin agreed, only able to hum the sentiment as he took a swig from his glass.
Felix poured a little more from the bottle into his glass, already foreseeing that they would stay up very late chatting that night.
Fake alcohol or not, he was sure that the strange buzz of happiness he felt coursing throughout was anything but fake.