If you ask Felix right now if he hates Hyunjin, he doesn't know for sure if he can still say 'no, I don't' because that brat literally steps inside their household with a smile on like he didn't just cause a ruckus inside Felix's head that makes the latter thinks he'll go crazy.
Hyunjin feigns innocence and skips to the kitchen to check his wonderful milk sitting on top of the counter―Felix hits his forehead for forgetting to remove the discounted price tag―before cheering so loud. Felix thinks he's gone mad.
"This is so amazing!" Hyunjin cheekily opens the package like there is something interesting in it because Felix knows that there isn't and Hyunjin is just trying to get away from his wrath.
"Hwang Hyunjin." He thinks he sounds scary even though Chan always tells him that he looks nowhere near being scary, but he can try, okay. He can try! Hyunjin doesn't turn around and even shakes his hips from being so happy. "Hwang Hyunjin." He calls for him once again.
This time, Hyunjin looks back at him. Felix wants him to tremble―he knows he is intimidating. "What do you want, you little human being?"
And Hyunjin even has the nerve to call him a little human being?
He doesn't understand where he was wrong. He fixes his stance, the way Changbin taught him before and even puffs his chest out because apparently, muscle men do that to look intimidating. He looks down at his feet and widens his gait. He walks towards Hyunjin but that boy is just holding his chuckles in like Felix cannot see him.
"What is so funny?" He sulks. He thinks he sounded defeated.
"Why are you walking like that?" Hyunjin eyes down his legs and looks back at his eyes before completely spurling into a good laugh, even going to a point of hitting his thighs.
He doesn't really understand Hyunjin!
"What are you talking about―" He stops in the middle and looks down at his legs. He is such an embarrassment, holy crap. "I'm trying to intimidate you!" He docks his head to try and hide his face because not only is he fuming from anger but is also fuming from embarrassment because he just did that to himself in front of his very annoying roommate when his roommate should've been the one who is embarrassing.
Hyunjin stops chuckling and raises the bundle of milk and turns around to face the kitchen sink while Felix is still busy regaining his composure.
At this point, he doesn't really know what he is doing either, trying to intimidate Hyunjin. It is just an endearment—which Hyunjin frequently calls him with as a total joke, of course—and what does that even have to do with him, right?
He can just ignore it and go through his day of soaking his body in the tub, using the lavender bathing oil he took from Seungmin's belongings without his good friend's knowing. He can also just proceed on sizzling vegetables and make himself a good dinner that his housemate is very incapable of so he will end up cooking for him too—
This meatball!
"Hyunjin!" He raises his voice. This time he is determined that he is so intimidating that even his bulked-up friend, Seo Changbin, will back off. He raises his chin and places his hands on his hips, totally looking like the pregnant woman Hyunjin resembles most of the time. "What were you doing earlier?"
Hyunjin hums a response. Felix knows for sure that Hyunjin doesn't have the slightest intention of telling him.
He walks further to meet Hyunjin who is smiling so wide at the sight of the milk that is lined perfectly straight on the counter with the red tag of discount hanging on one of them. Hyunjin turns around to him, delight drenching his whole face—eyes glimmering, cheeks flushing, teeth all on display. Felix really needs to learn to stop using intricate details to talk about how annoying Hyunjin is—and beams up even more when Felix yanks his arms away from touching Hyunjin.
"This is making me emotional." Hyunjin holds his chest and closes his eyes. "Your honey works late at night and you just bought him four cartons of milk." He lastly speaks and wipes his tears away from his cheeks.
So fucking dramatic!
Felix musters a snort so loud Hyunjin opens his eyes slightly to see what is happening to him—which he should because he is minutes away from pulling Hyunjin's very damaged hair from his scalp.
He wants to end this discussion once and for all. He needs his well-deserved rest and beauty sleep. He will not think of Hyunjin calling him sweetie and honey. He will not think of Hyunjin. At all.
Mark his words!
"Can you please," he dusts his pants off because his hands feel awkward on his hips and waits for Hyunjin to give him his attention which the latter did, and now he doesn't know what the hell he is doing. "Uh— uh you know—"
Hyunjin looks pleased. With a raised brow, he smiles at bewilderment towards Felix, and Felix feels himself melt. Negatively, okay? Negatively!
"Would you want your lovely sweetheart to have a girl clinging to him in our home?" Hyunjin speaks with so much grace and words are pronounced as clear as the lake—he isn't trying to be poetic. "That is so cruel of you, Felix."
Hyunjin really has to stop being so annoying.
****
He is not only ashamed of the way Hyunjin points at his awkward gait—he takes a mental note to scold Changbin later on even when Changbin's tad older than him because his tips don't work on a brat named Hwang Hyunjin—but also to the fact that he completely shuts off when Hyunjin just called him sweetheart.
He hates it. So bad.
He hates the fact that he feels like he lost all his strength and his knees wobble at that because not only does Hyunjin tease him to make him back off from bickering but also because he lost by running to the bathroom to calm himself down.
Hyunjin probably should thank him for doing that because he will not like it if Felix unleashes his anger. Yes, that is right. Hyunjin owes him gratitude.
He shifts in his bed because again, he deserves his beauty sleep, but instead of sleeping, what he actually gets is a racing mind, tingling limbs, and the urge to get out of his bed, and cook himself something.
Of course, he doesn't expect Hyunjin to be there. Why in the world would he be there, watching a drama on the television, potentially about to cry because of the way he holds his knees together?
In front of Hyunjin are some takeaway containers that Hyunjin probably just got from the fridge and reheated using the microwave, and he looks so small in his stance.
Felix will tuck him to the bed if only he isn't annoying.
He shrugs and inhales deeply to prepare himself for his adventure.
He tiptoes his way to the kitchen, making sure to leave no remnants of his existence in that apartment, and considers flying back to Australia if Hyunjin ever catches him being so affected by his mere existence.
And again, of course. Hyunjin has his way to see Felix every time he wishes people to unsee him.
"Do you finally admit your loss and succumb to my glory, you little human being?" Fuck. Hyunjin even raises his voice for Felix to hear while the background sound is just pure sobbing of the two main leads.
He thinks he has a headache or maybe his blood pressure is rising again. He thinks of blaming Minho, for this is definitely not what he signed up for. He thinks he can just live inside Seungmin's apartment because apparently that's what friends do. He thinks Hyunjin will let him go and will not press further on the topic of him being a little human being and losing, but Hyunjin literally waits for him to answer back with a smart remark.
"I will let you starve here if you don't stop teasing me." He contemplates as he threatens Hyunjin. That definitely isn't a smart remark. Is this how his life is going to be then?
Hyunjin stretches his neck and looks at him like he just stole something—which he actually did. Seungmin's taste in bathing oils is the bomb—and what sits on his bare face and supple skin is a small smile of concern.
Felix cannot believe himself either.
Hyunjin doesn't even care about him.
But why is there a 'small smile of concern'? Why is there a glint on Hyunjin's eyes and that caring demeanor he has as if he is inviting Felix to a dinner?
Hyunjin blinks at him, as if his mere eyes that hold the stars like a starry sky will make him stumble and stop to completely face him. Felix notices the tears that brims on Hyunjin's eyelids and something about that calls for him.
He stops fumbling and looks back.
"I actually bought food. Come here." Hyunjin spares him one last look and goes back to watching the drama—he definitely will not turn that drama off just because Hyunjin is crying, trust him.
He doesn't know what to do—like he ever knows what to do whenever Hyunjin's being like that to him—and waits for a minute or two before carefully, slowly, and silently walks towards Hyunjin.
He doesn't really hate Hyunjin. Apart from his annoying antics of never-ending accusations and theatrics, Hyunjin is really nice. He is nice by allowing Felix to sit beside him and looks at his inhumane choice of fast food that is more of a grease than of a chicken, but that is okay too. He is nice by letting Felix see him cry over a drama and hear him swallow his sobs. He is nice by removing the hood of his jacket and turns at Felix when the drama finally ends. He is nice by smiling at Felix even when he already looks so sad.
Felix reluctantly picks the fork up and pokes the chicken meat. He feels Hyunjin's eyes on him, but he cannot bring himself to look back.
Before he can even bring the food to his mouth, Hyunjin already mutters something that made him stop. "That is already my payment for the milk."
Hyunjin presses the button for the next episode.
Goddamn it.
He totally doesn't hate Hwang Hyunjin.
****
He should've just stayed in his bed and rot in it, forgetting that he has another shift to go the next day and just lie to Seungmin about being sick—which holds quite a reality to it. He actually feels sick to his stomach because there is definitely something in it that flutters against his skin.
He cannot bring himself to close his eyes and not think about the way he leaves Hyunjin there, crying because the two main leads finally kissed. What was he supposed to do then?
Wrap his arms around Hyunjin and caress his head? Like hell would he do that.
Something outside of his room rattles. As far as he can remember, there are no rodents in Minho's apartment nor are there any potential burglars because that apartment is one of the most expensive apartments Felix's eyes had ever laid on, but there is a 171 cm Hwang Hyunjin that lives with him.
The sound doesn't stop and just keeps on getting louder. He looks at the time on his cell phone and ignores the notifications that lit the screen of his phone up. It is almost two in the morning and Hyunjin isn't even asleep—he isn't either but that is not the point.
So if Hyunjin will not stop appearing in his mind, he will not stop causing chaos in that apartment either because now all he can hear is Hyunjin whining over something and is literally screaming.
Felix doesn't know where to find his sanity.
He yelps loudly and closes his eyes. He will stop doing whatever that is, soon. He wishes in his darkened vision.
But boy, who is he trying to convince?
Hyunjin doesn't stop. Instead, he clangs for what seems to be ladle and a whole fucking pot, making Felix to grumble on his way to the kitchen.
Hyunjin's eyes are bloodshot and his hair is tucked by a hairband. His face is decorated with what seems to be a white clay mask—which doesn't look nice if you ask Felix's opinion—and his lips look like they are bitten to crimson because of its plumpness and shape.
Maybe he can ask Hyunjin's lip balm when they are finally civil to each other.
Hyunjin swings the ladle around and swiftly glides on the floor, trying to chase something that Felix has no idea of.
He tries to breathe in and out. Chan told him that it is his way of calming himself down whenever Minho does something less intelligible—Felix translates it to stupid but Chan will not call Minho's deeds stupid because that is how whipped he is—and now is his time to test it if it will work.
It doesn't work.
"Hyunjin," his voice staggers. He sounds so weak when he isn't even weak at all. "Please tell me that you have a reason why you're clanging our utensils and pots together like a madman."
He presses his fingers on his glabella. Hyunjin has to have a valid argument over this. Please.
Hyunjin doesn't really pay him attention and makes another sound that forces Felix to close his eyes harshly. If he cries out of nowhere, please do know that it is because of Hyunjin, and his less intelligible deeds and choices in life.
"There is a mosquito and I don't like mosquitoes."
He gets it. Maybe the real reason why Minho offers him this apartment is because Minho's adorable friend, Hyunjin, needs someone to take care of him and practically drags him to the bed. He fucking gets it already!
Now where is the part where he can just undo his life choices and beg Changbin to let him leech off his salary for like a month or two? Can't he ask for a return and exchange?
"So you think making some noise is going to make them leave you?" He speaks his words calmly and efficiently. He is not going to waste his breath over some mosquito issue—
"They're loud. What else can you do to chase them out? Be loud as well!"
Oh dear God.
"Hyunjin that is not—" He tries to be a decent person and lowers his voice to a decent volume because they aren't the only ones in that building trying to have a good night's sleep.
Hyunjin doesn't let Felix say anything else and clangs the pots and pans the loudest for that night.
"This idiot!" It hurts his ears, but he has things to do and a child to potentially sedate. Maybe Minho knows that his patience is long enough and gives him this as a challenge.
But now he realizes—
"Give that to me, you child!" He hurries to Hyunjin's side and takes the kitchen's belongings away from the child's hold.
--his patience isn't that long when it comes to Hyunjin.
He pants after everything that he did—which isn't a lot but being Hyunjin's housemate is quite exhausting—and glares at Hyunjin, trying once again to intimidate him because now he is actually furious. Hyunjin subtly stops and gently nudges him, trying to appease him with the softness of his touch—it works incredibly well but Felix will not admit that—and chuckles lightly.
It must be the loud sound that makes him want to lean close to Hyunjin because a sniff of his scent makes his head light. It must also be the fact that Hyunjin looks funny that makes him want to hit Hyunjin and make him fall asleep.
He is losing his mind.
He doesn't take his eyes away from Hyunjin. He tries sending a signal of 'go to bed or else' but you know what, nothing ever works on Hyunjin.
So when Felix furrows his brows further, Hyunjin just apologetically smiles at him. "I probably woke you up. I'm sorry."
He appreciates the gesture, the apologies, and the smile.
But before he can ever retort a response back to Hyunjin's apology, Hyunjin already winks at him and suggests, "Instead of calling me a child, why not call me baby? Right?" before completely walking out the kitchen leaving Felix dumbfounded with a ladle on his right hand and a pot on his left hand.
Hyunjin is his demise.
And Minho knows this.
Felix cannot take this anymore. He will file a complaint to their landlord aka Lee Minho.
****
hi! i hope you enjoyed this chapter as much as i did while writing it. i will update at least twice or thrice a week, depending on my schedule. thank you for reading! ♡