(Hyunjin's POV)
"You...WHAT?" Jisung bellows, eyes widening in shock. "Tell me you're joking."
"Do I look like I'm joking?" comes Hyunjin's dry reply.
"I don't know! You have a pretty decent poker face!" The brunet slumps back in his spot, his mouth hanging in disbelief. "You- you...were you..."
Hyunjin arches a brow at Jisung's sputtering, giving him the most unimpressed look. "Was I what?"
"Were you... lonely? I mean, you could've told me if you were," his friend finally manages to speak coherently while eyeing Hyunjin both cautiously and pitifully.
The taller boy stares in confusion before letting out a soft, dismissive snort. He resists the urge to toss his empty beer can at his friend for the asinine question. "You know me so well," he answers sarcastically.
"Well, what then? Were you bored? Were you just looking for a fling?" Jisung asks in obvious exasperation. "This city is swimming with girls, why her?"
Hyunjin, now inching into annoyance, crumples up his aluminum can. He was this close to actually throwing it at that pretty brown head next to him but calmly makes his way over to the trash bin instead. "You know I don't do flings," he mumbles curtly, tossing the flattened can with a resigned sigh.
The dryer that's been quietly rumbling in the background slowly comes to a halt and Hyunjin pivots himself to go tend to the machine. He could use a break from his roommate's presence.
"Come back! Are you seriously doing laundry right now?! I have so many more questions!" Jisung practically flails on the couch, his voice climbing an octave higher.
Hyunjin sighs again as he opens up the dryer. "Listen- I didn't tell you all that for shits and giggles," he grunts, reaching in to grab the fresh, warm clothes.
"Oh yeah? I might not be giggling but I sure as heck almost shit my pants when you said you freakin' kissed her! No- I take that back, I might be shitting my pants right n—"
Hyunjin quietly strides back into the living room holding a basket full of clothes, effectively cutting Jisung off with a highly judgmental look. "That's disgusting, don't make us more dirty laundry. And the kiss was hardly the point, dummy. Tell me you don't find it suspicious that no one's hounded us—let alone even mentioned why we never brought her in? And, Minho..." he trails off, disturbed by his last few encounters with the older boy. "Things just aren't adding up. They're up to something, Jisung. Or at least, Minho is."
"Maybe she's not a priority at the moment, it's happened before," the roommate answers casually without giving it a second thought.
Hyunjin bristles before reclaiming his seat on the couch. "Did you not hear the part about what Minho mentioned or what he did?"
"Hyung's popped in and out of our assignments before and sometimes he does things to keep us in line; this isn't anything new," Jisung responds, further defending Minho. "AND WAIT—IF I SHIT MYSELF, I'D DO MY OWN DAMN LAUNDRY!" he yells in delay after realizing the basket of clothes was set on the floor next to him. His eyes narrow at the fact that Hyunjin had gone ahead and done his very giant pile of laundry in the midst of doing his own smaller load.
"No," Hyunjin states firmly, ignoring Jisung's last comment. "He's never involved himself to this extent—not like this. Believe me, something's off." A stormy expression blankets his face as he recalls the recent events involving his superior.
Jisung ruffles his hair in frustration. "Look. I don't know what you're getting at, but for hell's sake—we're all on the same side," he pushes words through gritted teeth. "It's you who's playing with fire, Hyunjin. I told you not to get too close to that girl, but you went ahead and complicated things when I clearly remember telling you not to!"
Hyunjin's gaze rises towards the living room window as he absorbs Jisung's berating tone. He's reminded of the time you had stared out of the same window during that one God-awful snowstorm. The worry spreading across your face didn't go unnoticed back then despite him playing it off like the situation wasn't a big deal.
But he had also been worried at the time. Not so much about the storm, but in regards to whether Jisung would be coming back that night while you were stuck in their place; he wasn't sure how he'd explain the crazy situation if it came to that.
And so, never did he imagine he'd willingly tell the brunet everything like this.
"Jisung."
"What?" he snaps, irritated.
"I need to know," Hyunjin begins slowly, unsurely. "Do you have my back?"
His friend looks over at him from the opposite end of the sofa, brows knitting together in growing concern. "In what scenario?"
"I don't know... but if things go south, I need to know that I can trust you."
There's silence.
The heavy kind.
And then finally, Jisung leans forward in his seat, clasping his hands together uneasily. "I don't like this," he mutters, shaking his head gravely.
Hyunjin briefly clenches his jaw before looking down at his own hands. "I don't either."
"Hyunjin. Don't make me choose," comes Jisung's gentle reply before briefly pausing, "...between our friendship and everything we've worked towards all these years. Don't put me in that situation."
He doesn't look at Jisung. He knew it was selfish and a lot to ask for. The last thing he wanted was to put this kind of a burden on his friend's shoulders.
But a gut feeling was telling him that his longtime friend and colleague needed to know what was going on. There was just no one else he could turn to about this—about you.
He needed backup, but hoped to never use it.
◈ ◈ ◈
(Your POV)
After jogging down the flight of stairs to leave your dorm, your heart nearly stops seeing familiar yet unexpected people standing near the entrance of the lobby.
"Uh, Chan?" you call out, shocked. "And... Minjoo?"
The two figures you recognize both immediately beam you the biggest smiles as they catch sight of you walking towards them.
"We were coming to see you," Chan's warm voice flows as he spreads his arms wide to hug you.
Not wasting another moment, you run and throw your arms at him, hugging him fiercely as he embraces you securely. "You're back—you guys are back!" you exclaim elatedly. It's honestly the most happiness you've felt in weeks. Hearing Chan's hearty laughter and Minjoo's excited squeal bring tears to your eyes.
"I left Busan a little early—I felt horrible you were here alone over winter break," Minjoo says in a small voice as you latch onto her with an equally tight hug. She rocks back and forth with you against her, and it's all you can do to not fully burst into tears.
"Yeah, I changed my plane ticket to come back early. My family were supportive of it knowing you were here without us." Chan's comforting tone makes your chest constrict. You feel utterly grateful he and Minjoo chose to return sooner than intended just for you.
"Thank you for thinking about me, gosh- I missed you both so much," your voice wavers, the pang in your chest lingering.
Minjoo pulls back to look at your face. "Oh, what's the matter? You're crying..."
Shaking your head, you give your friends the smile they deserve. "I'm just so happy to see you guys," you sniffle, wiping away the tears that had unknowingly fallen. A lot had happened while they were away and so many emotions take a hold of you. "You didn't tell me you made it back to Seoul."
"We wanted to surprise you. But, were you heading out just now?" Chan asks, eyeing the tote bag around your shoulder.
"Yeah... the cafe called needing some extra help today. But if I knew you guys were gonna be here, I would've declined the shift," you mention regretfully. It's been weeks since you last saw your friends; you would've much preferred to spend time with them than to work.
"Oh don't you worry, we're coming back tonight!" Minjoo chirps, her usual high energy returning as she bumps your elbow with hers. "We have to catch up! Chan and I will bring drinks and snacks, k? So you better not be tired!"
Your face instantly brightens. "I'll look forward to it!"
◈ ◈ ◈
(Later that night....)
"So, how's Felix doing?" you ask from the couch, munching on the abundant snacks that were brought over.
"Oh, he's good," Chan answers with a mouth full of chips. He was casually sitting crisscross on the floor facing you and Minjoo who took the sofa. "Lix totally made his little sister cry because he didn't tell her he was gonna visit over the holidays," he snickers, shaking his head.
"Bet she was in for a surprise!" You raise your brows at the thought of Felix being a big brother. You always forgot he was a middle child.
"That's an understatement, Olivia nearly wiped him out when he popped out of the car," Chan laughs, "I was there and the whole interaction was priceless."
You smile to yourself. "I'm glad he's getting to see his family—it's been years, right?"
Chan nods. "Oi, but he misses you a ton. He kept wanting to come back early with me to see you but I scolded him to stay—told him I'd keep you company til he returns next week."
You could totally see Felix whining to Chan and it brings you laughter.
"Have you talked to Seungmin at all?" Minjoo pipes up. "He hasn't really answered my texts."
"Yea, he did mention the cell service was not all that great where he's staying at in Jeju. Last I heard, he said he finally got sick of eating their famous island mandarins everyday," you recall in amusement.
"Well- I hope he comes back nice and round like a freakin' mandarin!" Minjoo huffs, irked that Seungmin hasn't messaged her back.
Chan lets out a snort.
"Oh! How's Hyunjin by the way?" Minjoo wiggles her brows suggestively at you to which you respond with narrowed eyes.
"Who's Hyunjin?" Chan chimes in, finishing the last bit of his soda.
"Oh, no one... just a cute guy our girly is crushing on!" Minjoo flips her hair over her shoulder rather triumphantly, totally ignoring your death glare.
"Not. True. Are you drunk already?" you ask through clenched teeth.
Minjoo takes a swig of her drink and shrugs.
Chan now gives you a questionable look while reaching for a second can of soda. "Have I met him?"
"Oh my God, you guys. STOP."
Minjoo giggles at your reaction while clinking her beer can with the one you're holding. "C'mon, Felix and I totally saw the way you looked at him when we were out that night. Plus, Hyunjin definitely had his eyes glued on you the entire time," she whispers the last part, giving you the most obvious wink.
"Hey, Felix told me you were so drunk you puked on him that night in the taxi," you retort defensively. "Your memories can't be trusted."
Minjoo juts her lips out at you and you smirk back victoriously.
"Where did you meet him? Does he go to our school?" your big brother from another mother interjects, sounding wary.
"Chan, please. It's nothing like that," you groan. "He's a frien-"
Suddenly, a flashback of the kiss makes you go awkwardly still in mid motion.
Your face heats up.
"I like you."
You fall silent realizing you haven't spoken to Hyunjin since then.
Minjoo leans in from next to you, squinting at your face. "Are you... blushing?"
You whip your head away, biting the inside of your cheek. Squeezing your eyes shut, you tip your head back to take a really big gulp of your beer.
"Oh my God, something happened between you two, am I right? Was it while we were gone?" Minjoo inquires aggressively. "What happened? Tell us!"
"Nothing," you mutter. "Can we talk about something else?"
"I'm not dropping this subject matter until you spill!"
"Minjoo..." you whine, pathetically eyeing Chan in hopes of him stepping in. But he simply shrugs at your helpless expression.
"Oi, don't look at me, I'm completely lost right now."
"C'mon, you never hide stuff from us—did something happen with Hyunjin?" Minjoo presses further with crazy twinkles in her eyes. She was actually serious enough to set her drink down on the coffee table and wait for your response.
"Okay, fine," you sigh. "He kissed me," you relent under your breath, lowering your head in embarrassment.
"WHAT," Minjoo practically screams. "For reals?!"
You manage a weak nod. "And I kissed him back," you mumble.
Chan chokes on whatever he was munching on and Minjoo throws him a dirty look as he begins to enter a coughing fit. She quickly turns back to you, shaking your arm. "Can you be more specific? When did you guys kiss? Where? How did it happen? What happened after?"
She throws so many questions all at once trying to coax more information out of you and you can barely get a word in to stop her.
"Oh my gosh." Minjoo clasps a hand over her mouth, pausing dramatically while staring at you wide eyed. "You guys slept together."
You turn a nice shade of beet red and begin to sputter incoherent noises. "Wh- no! No!" You immediately turn to Chan in horror to explain it was not true in case he believed it.
But to your relief, he's (now) on all fours still coughing and you're not sure he even heard Minjoo's last comment.
You groan, defeatedly throwing yourself back on the couch as Minjoo bursts into a roar of laughter next to you. But at least even in the midst of all the teasing and giggling, she still had the decency to push a glass of water to Chan who was turning a bit red himself.
Ugh.
You definitely aren't drunk enough to be having this conversation with these two.
✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* ◈ ◈ ◈ *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧
⤠ a/n: not sure who i'd want to spill this kind of tea to: jisung or chan ; - ;