Changbin was nervous. The group was having a Halloween party at the dorm, and everyone was dressing up. The rapper had decided that for once, he wasn't going as a vampire or a scary monster. No, this year, he was dressed as a puppy.
A cute, fluffy, adorable puppy.
All the members - and indeed, the whole world - thought of him as the Dark Rapper. Understandably, since that's the image Changbin had worked very hard to portray. But it wasn't his true self. No, Changbin's true self was closer to the brown, fluffy costume he was currently wearing, right down to the floppy ears and long, bushy tail.
Very few people knew this side of him existed - he'd been very careful of that. But sometimes, when he was super stressed, he needed a chance to relax completely and just be himself.
Today was one of those days. He was just nervous because, well, he'd never shown his alter-ego to so many people before. Yes, they were practically family, and no, he didn't think they'd make fun of him or anything. But you never knew. So here he was, standing inside his bedroom door, trying to muster the courage to go out and join the others.
His breath came in short, hot gasps under all the make-up, and his hands felt clammy inside the big, soft paws. If he'd had control of his tail, it probably would have been tucked between his legs. But he wanted to go to the party and have a few drinks with his friends, so he took a deep breath and turned the handle.
As soon as he opened his door, he could hear music coming from the loungeroom - that must be where everyone was. Cautiously making his way down the hallway, he wished the kitchen was on this side of the dorm, so he could down some liquid courage on the way. But alas, the architects hadn't predicted this specific situation.
Heaving a sigh, Changbin turned the corner into the loungeroom. "Hi guys!" he said, in an almost normal voice.
Suddenly, six pairs of eyes were trained on him. Various noises erupted, ranging from shocked gasps to shy giggles, to outright laughter. The rapper's cheeks burned, and he was very thankful for the make-up he was wearing.
"Hey, puppy!"
"Woof woof!"
"Doggy want a bone?"
Meanwhile, Jisung - being Jisung - got down on all fours and started wiggling his bum from side to side and sticking his tongue out, a silly grin on his face.
Changbin didn't know what to do. A sudden wave of panic hit him, and he started backing away from the approaching members, but after a couple of steps, his back hit the wall. He glanced from face to face, trying to find a friendly smile, but everywhere he looked, all he could see was ridicule and teasing.
Feeling like he couldn't breathe, the rapper stumbled forwards and broke through the circle of people, heading for the back door.
"Binnie?"
"Hyung, where are you going?"
"To the doghouse, obviously," came Minho's dry, sarcastic voice.
As Changbin desperately wrenched the back door open, he heard a loud 'slap', followed by, "Hey, what was that for??"
Thank you, Jisung! he thought, making a mental note to reward his friend later.
The fluffy-costumed rapper finally made it out onto the back porch, gulping lungfuls of cool air. His heart was hammering, and his head was spinning, so he collapsed onto the nearby swing lounge and curled into a ball, silent tears streaming down his cheeks.
~♡~
Seungmin smiled at his reflection. Perfect. Then he glanced at his alarm clock and sighed. He'd missed the beginning of the party, but that didn't matter. It was much more important to add the finishing touches to his costume.
Taking a final look in the mirror, he adjusted his leather jacket one last time. The other members were going to be so surprised!
Practically skipping out the door, the singer made his way to the loungeroom, an excited smile gracing his lips. Just before he got there, though, he suddenly realised that part of his costume was missing. Quickly dipping his hand into the pocket of his black, leather pants, he whipped out a pair of designer sunglasses and placed them on his head. Then he walzed through the doorway into the loungeroom.
"What up, homies?"
Every person in the room turned and stared at him, jaws hanging open. Seungmin bathed in the attention, arms out wide and head thrown back. But after 10 seconds of dead silence, he opened his eyes again.
"What? Too cool?"
He did a little spin and flashed a cheeky smile at the group, winking at Jeongin, who pretended to swoon.
"I think I'm in love..." the maknae sighed dramatically.
"Um ... no," Felix said, a look of bewilderment on his face as he stared at Seungmin.
"Yeah, definitely not," agreed Jisung, shaking his head.
"Why not?" demanded Seungmin. "Why can't I look cool if I want to?"
"'Cause it's just not ... you." Minho scrunched up his face in distaste. "Just stick to being the dandy-boy - that's what you're good at."
The younger harrumphed. "But I don't want to be the dandy-boy anymore. I wanna try something new. Something cool."
He looked around the room and saw that most of the members had lost interest at this point. "Fine, if nobody wants me here, then I'll leave."
As he headed for the back door, Hyunjin called out, "Where are you going, Minnie?"
"Outside. On my own."
Just then, Chan wandered out of the kitchen, an alcoholic drink in his hand.
"I'll take that, Old Man," Seungmin said, swiping the glass out of Chan's unresisting hand. The older stared at him in bemusement as he walked away.
"Peace out, homies!"
Seungmin raised the glass in farewell as he went through the door. Once out of sight of the door, he leant against the wall, sliding down til his backside hit the ground. Putting the glass down beside him, he buried his face in his hands and started to sob.
~♡~
Changbin's ears perked up when he heard the door open. On hearing Seungmin's voice, he wiped his eyes and sat up, looking around. He waited expectantly, but no one appeared. Thinking the boy had gone back inside, he lay back down on the swing lounge, closing his eyes again.
But that was when he heard quiet sobs. Sitting up again, perplexed, he got to his feet and cautiously peeked around the corner. There was Seungmin, sitting with his back to the wall, his head in his hands, rocking slightly back and forth.
Changbin's eyes widened.
"Seungmin-ah?"
The younger's head snapped up at that, revealing a red, blotchy face, tears still coursing down his cheeks. He looked shocked to see Changbin, but his expression quickly changed to intense confusion as he gazed at the older.
The rapper didn't understand at first, but then he suddenly remembered what he was wearing. Gazing at his oversized paws for a moment, he let out a chuckle.
"Guess you're wondering why I'm wearing this, huh?"
Seungmin wiped his eyes, saying, "Um ... yeah."
Changbin sighed and sat down on the ground, placing the end of his tail in his lap.
"I wanted to do something different this time. Something ... more like me."
The younger looked at him quizzically.
"You see," the rapper continued, "the whole 'dark rapper' thing - that's just a persona that I use in public, so people don't see the real me. I'm actually basically a ... a ... puppy." He finished in a whisper, embarrassment making his tail the most interesting thing there.
"I think it's adorable!" said the singer softly.
Changbin looked up at that. "You do?? You'd be the only one, then. All the others were teasing me about it - that's why I was out here."
Seungmin sighed. "I know what you mean. They were teasing me, too."
The older's eyebrows lowered menacingly. "What on Earth for?? I think you look really cool!"
The singer blushed, a tentative smile forming on his face. "Really?"
"Yeah. I think the leather really suits you. Stays'd be swooning left, right, and centre if they saw you like this!"
Seungmin picked up his drink and took a sip, closing his eyes briefly as the warmth travelled down his oesophagus.
"What's that?" Changbin asked.
The younger shrugged. "No idea. I swiped it off the Old Man in there." He pointed back through the door. "Whatever it is, it's good, though. Want some?"
"Sure." The rapper took the glass and tipped the liquid down his throat. "Ahhhh..." he sighed. "That was good!"
"So ... what can this cool biker dude do?"
At that, Seungmin's eyes lit up. "You really wanna see?"
"Of course! What've you got for me, Seungmo?"
The younger got to his feet, excitement written all over his face. He put the sunglasses over his eyes, struck a cool-looking pose, and exclaimed, "What up, homie?" Then he spun around, whipped the glasses off, and winked at Changbin.
The older laughed heartily and clapped his paws together. "That was awesome!"
Seungmin sat down again. "Now it's your turn, puppy."
"Oh! Um..."
The rapper suddenly got shy, looking down at his lap and fiddling with his tail. But after a minute, he got up on his hands and knees and crawled over to Seungmin. He shook his head from side to side, making his long ears flop about. Looking at the younger with big, sad eyes, he put his head on the side and started panting, his tongue lolling out of his mouth. Then, without warning, he flopped onto his side, his head in Seungmin's lap.
The singer laughed out loud, beautiful music to Changbin's ears. Then he started stroking the older's head, saying, "Oh, puppy! You're adorable!"
In response, Changbin grabbed his fluffy tail and started thumping it on the ground. Then he closed his eyes and just lay still, enjoying all the attention he was getting.
The two stayed like that for quite a while, sharing a comfortable silence amidst the quiet noises of the deepening night. But soon Seungmin started feeling a cramp in his legs, so he suggested moving somewhere else.
"The swing lounge is quite comfy," offered Changbin.
So he got up and held out his paw to the younger. When Seungmin grabbed it and pulled himself up, the rapper exclaimed, "You're shivering! Do you want to go back inside?"
The singer immediately shook his head. "No, not yet, it's much nicer out here."
So they sat on the swing lounge together as the first stars peeked out from the darkening sky. Changbin wrapped his furry-costumed arms around Seungmin's shivering body, the younger cuddling up to the rapper's side.
~♡~
Back inside the dorm, the party was in full swing. The music was loud, the games chaotic, and the alcohol was being consumed at a steady rate. The two members' absence hadn't even been noticed.
Chan had been trying to have a nap, his head in Jeongin's lap. But suddenly, he sat up with a start and started counting the members. Soon, a very worried look clouded his face.
"Six ... not eight," he murmured.
"What, hyung?" Jeongin asked, beside him.
"We're s'posed to be eight - but there's only six here. I've lost two!" Chan wailed.
Felix looked up from the Play Station and assessed the situation.
"Changbinnie hyung and Minnie are missing. Has anyone seen them?"
Hyunjin (who had had quite a bit to drink by this stage) started looking under cushions, calling, "Binnie! Minnie!"
"Didn't they both go outside earlier?" asked Jisung.
"Yeah. To the doghouse," agreed Minho, snickering.
Jisung then got up and peered out the back window. "Guys!" he said, beckoning everyone over.
They all went to the window and looked out, to see what Jisung was pointing at.
There were Seungmin and Changbin, cuddled up together on the swing lounge.
A chorus of confused exclamations ensued.
"But they're opposites!"
"They're like black and white!"
"Or sweet and sour..."
"No," said Chan fondly from the back of the group. "They're yin and yang. They fit perfectly together, they compliment each other, they were always meant to be together - they just didn't know it til tonight."
"Awww..." replied all but one person.
"But we can still tease them, right?" Minho wanted to know.
Jisung promptly hit him on the arm, while the others glared daggers at him.
"What??" he inquired, with wide-eyed innocence.
~♡~
Outside on the porch, Seungmin and Changbin were still cuddled up together, gazing at the stars. A shooting star whizzed passed, and the younger said, "Isn't it beautiful?"
"Yes, very beautiful," agreed the rapper. But he hadn't seen the shooting star. He was too busy gazing at Seungmin.