43 missed calls, 22 texts: Felix. 15 memes, 24 gifs, 2 calls: Jeongin. 3 calls, 2 texts: Random unknown number. 13 follow requests, 5 dms, lots of likes: Scary girls on Instagram. General: Your photos have exceeded your storage limit.
Hyunjin wasn't surprised by his phone content for the week. The two people that talked to him had talked to him, and the only thing missing was a few texts from his mom.
He sat in his living room, thankful for the distraction of reading through all the messages and listening to all the voicemails. It cut through the bitterness of having to interact with people on a Saturday morning.
However, he had forgotten why Felix had sent him so many messages and called so many times. The gleeful smile Hyunjin wore soon fell when he saw when the texts were sent. They weren't that bad, just sad inquiries about Hyunjin's whereabouts, but then it was time for the voicemails.
43 times. He had tried 43 times to reach Hyunjin. He had wailed 43 times into the phone in a desperate attempt to find his friend, the boy becoming more hysterical with each call. He had called so much that the last one was just thirty seconds of sobbing and Changbin's voice mumbling comforting words. He hadn't sent anything after 9 pm, and Hyunjin recalled how worn Changbin's face was the next day. That must have been a hard night.
Hyunjin wiped the pooling tears from his eyes and tapped on Jeongin's chat to clear his mind. Memes always brought up Hyunjin's mood even if Jeongin had a weird sense of humor, and not surprisingly, Hyunjin only really laughed at about 3 of the 15 dumb things Jeongin had sent him. It was better than nothing though. However, he didn't need the meme Jeongin had made of his face, nor did he need the cheesy gifs sent at 1 am on Thursday that indicated that Jeongin actually missed him. Those were weirder than his sense of humor.
After resolving to tease Jeongin endlessly, Hyunjin moved on to Instagram. Not that it's worth mentioning. Hyunjin could care less about the likes on his posts from three years ago and all the follow requests from girls at school. Chan was amongst those follow requests though, which made Hyunjin glad he had checked before automatically deleting them.
The next step was telling his friends that he was alive and capable of communicating with them.
He started with Jeongin because that would be less emotional. They didn't talk for long, just enough time for Jeongin to confirm that Hyunjin was indeed grounded and laugh at him mercilessly. Hyunjin tried to keep up with the teasing, but gave up and ended the conversation when it became obvious he was losing.
He moved on to Felix, learning once again how gracious the boy was despite all the anguish Hyunjin had put him through. Felix's capital letters and sweet, celebratory emojis calmed Hyunjin, bringing back the daze that always fell over him when he spoke to Felix. A small smile played on his lips as Felix told him about what he was doing and how much fun he was having at Chan's house.
Hyunjin was well into the conversation when the green on his thumb caught his attention. A wild leaf curled around the edge, beckoning him to view the rest of the design. Hyunjin slowly peeled his thumb off the device followed by the rest of his hand until his palm met the light. There were the numbers he had religiously avoided touching the past 24 hours. Sure he could have written them down, but what was the fun in that?
He stared at the vines and bolded numbers, his vision blurring the images, distorting them, making them grow and overtake his body the way his thoughts of Changbin had overtaken his brain for the past few weeks.
Hyunjin gently closed his fingers over the numbers, a wistful smile on his face as he remembered the shy look in Changbin's eyes. There was something so endearing about the expression. Something so real.
Hyunjin couldn't quite believe that he had Changbin literally in the palm of his hand. He could just text him. He didn't have to force words out of him. He didn't have to wait for the next opportunity or even wait for Felix. He could just text him!
The thought caused Hyunjin's heart rate to pick up as his gaze fell on the phone in his left hand. He glanced between the device and the green writing, bottom lip between his teeth, chest raising more with each breath. Time seemed to slow as his left thumb reached over his screen to start a new conversation.
Hyunjin almost didn't want it to happen. It felt odd. Unnatural. Being unable to see the object of his communication, unable to hear him. Hyunjin had gotten so used to cold Changbin, the closed-off boy that gave him one sentence that he would live off of and derive meaning from for a whole day. As much as he enjoyed the current relationship he had with Changbin, it just felt odd. Like he shouldn't be this close.
Regardless, his fingers still took over, typing in the number and a generic greeting before hitting send.
The euphoria that ran through Hyunjin's veins at seeing the message turn blue was like nothing he had ever experienced. His gaze fixated on the bottom corner of the screen, licking his lips in anticipation. He stayed there, phone in both hands, leaning over the screen until a loud sound from the kitchen woke him from his daze. He swallowed dryly and tapped back on his conversation with Felix.
The blond had sent him a solid six paragraphs about his plans for the day, which included baking cinnamon rolls, playing video games, and going to the store to find a pegasus costume. It was a beautiful plan in Hyunjin's opinion, and he was getting part of it as cinnamon rolls of his own were in the oven right then.
He could see his mother and Taehyuk bumping into each other as they arranged fruit and sausages on small plates. The day off of work created a giddy atmosphere that made Hyunjin restless. He wanted to relax and be happy too, but there was no way to do that here. He needed to be out of the house, or at least in his room.
It was fine though. He might not have Felix's great plan for the day, but he had Changbin. With luck, he could leave right after lunch and stay all afternoon.
His phone buzzed. The number wasn't saved, but the nickname in the message made it obvious who it was. Hyunjin grinned and changed Changbin's name to something more suitable.
Baby Bin
Hey Jinjin!
How are you???
I'm fine. You?
You don't sound very excited
I'm listening to my mother flirt with her fiance in the kitchen.
Oh
Is that why you texted???
Well, I just got my phone back.
Yay!!!
So can you come over today???
Hopefully. I was gonna ask at breakfast.
You haven't eaten yet??? Minsoo got up at 7 so we ate early
That's crazy! Tell her to sleep in!
I can't force her to sleep!!!
Whatever. What's the plan for today?
We're making Minsoo's Halloween costume!!!
What is it?
She's a cat in a dress
I tried to tell her that cats don't wear dresses but she insisted
Is it a character?
Not sure
I just hope you know how to sew
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Hyunjin did not know how to sew.
At this point, Changbin probably thought he was useless. He couldn't cook, he couldn't do math, he couldn't drive, and now he couldn't stitch together a few pieces of fabric.
They were hand sewing because despite all the luxury Changbin gave to Minsoo, he could not afford a sewing machine nor a store-bought costume.
Hyunjin scrunched his face and shook out his hand after pricking it for the tenth time in five minutes. He really wanted to know why he was sewing this fabric around a triangular piece of cardboard. Why couldn't he just color the cardboard black? Was that so much to ask? Sure it wouldn't attach as well to the headband, but it was a lot less work for one night of candy snatching.
He shouldn't have been complaining considering Changbin was working with about fifty strips of black and white fabric and layering them expertly on a piece of elastic to make a skirt while Minsoo tried to hit him in the head with the tail she already owned. He kept yelling at her, telling her to go play in her room, but she didn't listen.
Hyunjin sighed and stuck the needle through the black fabric once more.
"What are you going to be, Jinjin?"
Minsoo had taken to calling Hyunjin by Changbin's nickname. Hyunjin looked up at her from his place on the floor.
"Myself." Changbin snorted.
"Boring," Minsoo said with a pout.
"We could make you something too," Changbin added.
"Yes, yes! I want Jinjin in a skirt too!" Hyunjin's cheeks lit up.
"I don't think that's what he mea-"
"Oh! I have glitter from Lixie! You can be a unicorn and I'll be a cat! Please!" Hyunjin wasn't planning to go to the party, but if he did, he definitely was not going as a unicorn.
"Lixie is already a pegasus." He reasoned.
"A fairy?"
"Wings."
"What about a snow princess?"
"I told you I was dressing as myself." He said with hopes that the finality in his voice would be enough to convince the child that he was not going to wear a skirt for her. It wasn't.
"How about Binnie dresses as you and then you dress as a snow princess?" Changbin gave her a confused look.
"I look nothing like him?"
"But I want Jinjin to look pretty!"
"He'll look pretty no matter what he wears."
"But glitter!" Changbin rolled his eyes at the persistent child.
"You can just glitter bomb him at the party." Hyunjin stared at Changbin in horror.
"Or... we can turn him into a snow princess so the glitter actually makes sense." Why was this child so persuasive? And why was Changbin giving him evil looks?
"Fine. What do you think, Jinjin? Think I can pull off being you?" Hyunjin raised an eyebrow at the boy sitting across from him.
"I am no-"
"He's gonna have to bring you some clothes. He actually has style, unlike you." Minsoo wrinkled her nose up at Changbin's black t-shirt and sweatpants.
"I have that pink sweater somewhere."
"Oh gosh, no! Please never wear that again!"
"I said! I am no-" Hyunjin protested.
"I like it! And who are you to tell me what I can and cannot wear? You crazy-" Changbin reached out and tugged on Minsoo's tail, making her fall on her butt.
"Hey! I'm not the crazy one!"
"Wait, guys-"
"Like you weren't the one to make a picture out of your cereal this morning."
"Yeah, and you kept stealing pieces and making fun of my one-eyed frog that would have had an eye if you didn't eat it!" Changbin shrugged, amusement playing in his eyes as he returned to his work. "This is why you have no friends."
"Like you're any better."
"Shut up!"
As the two bickered, Hyunjin pursed his lips and plunged the needle through the fabric in his hand, upset they weren't listening to him. He must have stabbed too aggressively because the needle pierced more than the fabric.
"AHHHHHHH! That's it! I give up!" The outburst startled the siblings, and they watched Hyunjin throw the triangles down on the ground and nurse his finger.
"You good there, Jinjin?" Hyunjin scowled at Changbin from over his hand.
"Yeah, he's definitely a princess."
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