Chapter Text
Music has always been a big part of Sunoo’s life.
The instruments, the lyrics, and all the melodies mixed together to create a masterpiece that’s somehow able to touch the deepest part of your soul? It has him hooked.
As a matter of fact, he came out tap dancing out of his mother’s womb, and his first words were from the chorus of Britney Spears’ Toxic.
He was a theater kid growing up, so of course he knew all the words to every musical that has ever existed by heart, danced around the living room to all his favorite songs when nobody’s watching, and on a daily basis blasted the music in his headphones at the highest volume possible, likely the reason he’ll probably go deaf before he’s thirty.
He loves mostly any and all types of genres, but personally, no sound could ever beat the anxious, hopelessly romantic songs that tug on the heartstrings.
“But now there's nowhere to hide since you pushed my love aside-” Sunoo belts out at the top of his lungs, sitting against the couch in his friend’s Jay’s living room, hugging his knees against his chest. The new pair of headphones he just bought are working wonders, doing their job to cancel out the noise of his surroundings. Not that there’s much noise in the apartment anyways, it's just him, Jay, and his other friend/roommate Jungwon. But, if the music in Sunoo’s headphones isn’t so loud that he doesn’t feel his bones vibrating, it’s not worth listening to.
“I'm out of my head, hopelessly devoted to you…”
“Yo, shut the fuck up-” Jay shouts from down the hall, emerging from whichever room he came from. He pulls off one side of Sunoo’s headphones, “I can’t get another noise complaint—The landlord already doesn’t like that I’m a college student that lives here, I can’t risk getting evicted because you’re being emotional over the loss of your situationship.”
“But, he was my favorite one!”
“Exactly, Jay hyung,” Jungwon joins them, moving towards the couch and snuggling into Sunoo’s side, “There’s no need to be so harsh. Sun is really going through it right now so he needs all the support he can get.” Sunoo buries his face in his shoulder to further sell the act of a heartbroken boy.
“Don’t tell me you’re actually falling for this…” Jay remarks in disbelief. Sunoo and Jay have been friends for seven years, and their usual banter of Sunoo pissing Jay off intentionally for fun and him reacting accordingly throws most people off. Those who don’t know them both all too well might think they hate each other but that couldn’t be far from the truth.
“Fine, you got me,” Sunoo concedes, moving his headphones down to rest around his neck like a necklace, “But can’t a guy still be miserable about it? Valentine’s Day is coming up and now I’m gonna be lonely!”
Jungwon lays a reassuring hand on his knee, “You could always spend the day with us, hyung.”
“No offense but watching you two be lovey dovey with each other on a day like that might actually make me wanna eat my own eyeball.”
“We wouldn’t make you feel like a third wheel.”
“…Jungwon, the only reason why I was out here singing alone a minute ago was because you went to the bathroom and Jay followed you… and you guys stayed in there for fifteen minutes.”
“What can I say? He’s hot.” Jay smirks, causing Sunoo to almost barf from the cringe.
Sunoo gives them their flowers, though, because despite his two closest friends being a couple they don’t show their obnoxious PDA in front of him or other people in general.
But still, Sunoo didn’t expect those two to really understand where he’s coming from. After all, Jay and Jungwon have been dating for around two years and their relationship is still going strong, a never ending honeymoon phase.
Sometimes Sunoo envies them, why can’t he have what they have? All he has is 127 failed talking stages, bums who approach knowing they have no chance with him, and the delusion that his ex-boyfriend will hit him back up again.
The only thing keeping him company on the lonely days is his music. “It’s alright, Jungwon. All I need is my headphones and I’ll be perfectly fine.”
“Fine, fine,” Jungwon shrugs, before grinning. “You know, if you need anything to help lift your spirits, the perfect artist to listen to for Valentine’s is none other than Park Sunghoon-” Simultaneously, both Sunoo and Jay groan out loud, “Oh, come on—You guys both knew it was coming.”
Sunoo drags out his groan longer, “The obsession you have with him has to be studied.” Park Sunghoon, South Korea’s hottest idol out right now. Jungwon’s a hardcore fan: he’s got posters Jay claims that scare him at night, albums upon albums, a stan account on Twitter with 12k+ followers, and his most streamed artist on Spotify. If Park Sunghoon has a million fans, Jungwon’s one of them. If Park Sunghoon has one fan, it’d be him. If Park Sunghoon has zero fans, you might as well consider Jungwon dead. This Sunghoon guy has only been in the music scene for about two years now, and ever since Jungwon’s become one of his most dedicated fans.
Sunoo on the other hand doesn’t get what all the hype is about. He’s come across his music before, and it’s not bad at all, it's just that Sunghoon’s music isn’t his cup of tea. Sunoo prefers to listen to ballads and pop music rather than the slow R&B and pop punk sounds that make up a majority of Sunghoon’s discography.
“Sunghoon this, Sunghoon that,” Jay says dryly, “Babe, if Park Sunghoon randomly stopped you in the street and asked you out, would you drop everything and go on a date with him or still choose to be with me?”
Jungwon rolls his eyes at the question, “What the hell kind of question is that, of course I’d pick you. You guys make it seem like I’m in love with him or something…”
“Literally every day when you come across him on your social media you always talk about how handsome he is.”
“So? He’s just an idol to me, hyung. That doesn’t take away the fact that I’m dating you.”
“Okay, how about if Sunghoon DMed you on Instagram and asked you to sacrifice me or else he’ll stop making music, would you?”
“Wait, lemme actually think about this one…”
“What-”
Sunoo stands up abruptly, “While I would love to entertain this conversation,” His voice drips with sarcasm, “The last train of the night is almost arriving soon so I gotta bounce. Wonie, are you coming?”
He stops his bickering with Jay to answer, “Oh, um. Sorry, I’m sleeping over here tonight.”
Figures, “Alright, I’ll see you at the dorm whenever. Later.”
“Later!”
☀️☀️☀️
“Wait—goddammit.” Sunoo huffs in frustration, hunched over with his hands on his knees as he catches his breath.
He curses under his breath, watching the train he was hoping to catch zoom by. He wishes he had money to spare on a cab fare but he wasted his last paycheck on some new skincare products. Now he has no choice but to suck it up and walk that long distance home.
Begrudgingly, Sunoo takes the thirty minute walk back to his dorm, a significantly longer travel time compared to if he were to have actually caught the train in time. Fortunately, the route he’s taking doesn't have too much going on with it, just a few people casually standing around and talking at every turn. Not much to worry about.
“Oh my god, Hanbin! I haven’t seen you in forever!” A voice speaking in an oddly cartoonish way shouts from behind him, almost as if they’re playing a character. During his time living in Seoul, Sunoo’s learned to always mind your business if the situation doesn’t pertain to him. He keeps walking.
Suddenly, an arm is thrown over his shoulder. Startled, Sunoo stops walking when the person, a guy, presses his body closer to his. He’s got a black hoodie on, the hood pulled all the way so it’s covering all of his head. And, he’s got on a matching black face mask and sunglasses. “How’ve you been, man?”
“Uh…” Now, Sunoo’s even more confused. The last time he checked, his name wasn't Hanbin. Yet, the guy makes it seem like they really are long lost best friends or something. He’s never dealt with this kind of situation before, how is he supposed to react?
The hooded stranger starts walking, and now that they’re attached, Sunoo’s dragged along with him. Too scared to say anything, he stays silent.
“Laugh.” The guy commands softly.
“Uh… hahaha..?” He pretends to laugh, albeit awkwardly. Sunoo’s scared shitless right now… is he about to be robbed?
“HAHAHA!” Hoodie guy laughs obnoxiously as they turn the corner.
They keep walking together until they reach a bus stop where a bus is already parked. The stranger drags him on the empty bus through the back doors without paying the fare, sitting down on the nearest seats as the bus drives off.
“I-I don’t have any money.” Sunoo stammers. The statement isn’t quite true, but the stranger doesn’t need to know that. Sunoo hopes he comes across as poor.
“What?” The stranger questions, “Oh, no no! I’m not gonna rob you or anything, don’t worry.” He reassures, “Actually, I’m pretty sure you’re the one that needs to rob me-” He jokes, “I just needed an excuse to evade those two girls. I didn’t mean to scare you.”
“Okay…” Sunoo has more problems to worry about then some guy who’s probably on a shit ton of drugs. He turns away to look out the window, unfamiliar with the route the bus is taking, “I’m sorry, but, do you know what stops this bus goes to?”
“The bus?” The guy mimics, “Oh, I don’t know anything about that. I usually never take the bus.”
“…So you mugged me and dragged me onto some random bus that you have no idea where it goes to?”
“Okay, ‘mugged’ seems a bit much. I greatly prefer the term ‘borrowed’,” He haughtily replies, “Those girls were stalking me with these big ass cameras—I needed you as a distraction to get away.”
“Stalking?” Sunoo scoffs, “Who even are you, are you some kind of celebrity or something?”
“‘Am I some kind of celebrity?’” The stranger snorts, but stops laughing when he sees Sunoo’s blank stare, “Oh, you’re serious… You for real don’t know who I am?” He asks again.
Sunoo stares at him dumbly, “Am I supposed to know who you are…?”
The stranger simply blinks at him, “You know what, I’m feeling kind of generous today, I’ll do this just for you,” He pulls down his face mask as well as his sunglasses. He smiles, showing off his pearly white teeth, “Feeling blessed yet?”
“Um…” He stares at him for a while until it all finally clicks, “Oh, you’re that one guy. That sings.”
Honestly, Sunoo’s surprised he didn’t realize this guy was the Park Sunghoon sooner, it now makes sense why he was being chased by those two girls. The idol is pretty much the poster face for Korea. His music is all around, posters and advertisements on every wall surface, and then there’s Jungwon who never seems to shut up about him; it would be hard to avoid anything related to him.
The idol in question scoffs, “I’m not just ‘some guy who sings’, I’m like the hottest idol out right now.” He takes offense, “Don’t you watch the news?”
“I… really don’t care.” It’s way too late at night, and he has to open at work bright and early tomorrow, he does not have time to argue with an egoistic idol. He yawns, “Are you safe now? Am I good to get off at the next stop and figure out how to get back to my dorm?”
“Dorm…” Sunghoon tries out the word, “Are you a college student?”
“Um, yeah…?”
He leans back in his seat, crossing his arms, “College age kids actually make up a majority of my fan base, there’s no way you aren't a fan of mine…”
Sunoo fights the urge to roll his eyes, “News flash: Not everyone has to be a fan of you.” Just as he stated, he jumps out of his seat when the bus reaches its stop, leaving Sunghoon to his useless mumbling.
“Would you at least consider it?” He hears Sunghoon yell out behind him. Sunoo doesn’t need to exhaust himself any further by answering him back, so he remains quiet as the doors of the bus close and it drives off with Sunghoon on it and himself far away.
☀️☀️☀️
“Dammit!” Jungwon shouts, pounding his fists on Sunoo’s desk. From his bed Sunoo looks up from his phone to see what his friend’s screaming about this time.
“Lemme guess: you weren’t able to get the tickets.”
“I wasn’t able to get the tickets!” He clamps down on his head, “I’m gonna kill myself.”
On the rare occasion that his roommate is actually home instead of hanging around Jay’s apartment all the time, Jungwon’s holed up in Sunoo’s room with five different devices by his side just so he could score a better chance of getting in the queue and buying concert tickets for Park Sunghoon.
It’s kind of a sad sight to see him pouting over this, so Sunoo forced himself to get up and massage his roommate’s shoulder reassuringly. “Come on, it’s not the end of the world. There’s always next time.”
“Easy for you to say… you don’t like him as much as I do.”
He shrugs, “I just don’t get his appeal. I mean, it’s one thing to like his music, but why do you care so much for him as a person?”
“Because his music saved me.”
“Saved?”
“I was in a dark place back then, but when his debut album came out, listening to it was like all of my burdens were just lifted off my shoulders.” Jungwon explains, leaning back against the chair. “He writes his own lyrics, you know, and he means what he says. Sunghoon’s music heals people, why do you think he’s so popular? He’s not called the monster rookie for no reason; I don’t know why you still refuse to give him a chance.”
Sunoo guesses that it does make some sort of sense, Jungwon’s hobby of keeping up with anything related to the idol has kept his energy in high spirits these past two years. “But what if he’s not the guy you idolize him to be?” He brings up, “Would you still continue to support him?”
Sunoo recalls the random encounter he had with the idol that happened like a month ago, and just from that mini conversation alone had Sunoo’s energy draining for every second he continued to be in his presence—the complete opposite of what Jungwon describes him to be.
Jungwon only waves him off, “Oh please. His lyrics changed me, you can’t just fake that type of emotion that his lyrics give.”
“Fine, fine.” He nears his desk, pulling Jungwon’s chair back. “Our food’s here, by the way. Go collect it downstairs for us.”
“Great timing.” Jungwon lifts himself up from the chair, “Maybe the sushi we ordered can take my mind off the fact that I was unable to score tickets to my husband’s concert. By the way, I’m taking your coat for a minute.” He says, already taking Sunoo’s coat from the rack and putting it on his body.
Sunoo watches him leave before turning his attention to the ticket website tab left open on the latter’s computer. He sits down, scrolling through the ticket pricing options that are no longer available, and damn—he saw way too many zeroes just for the price of one. Even with Jungwon’s explanation, he still doesn’t get what all the hype is about.
No matter how much of a fan Sunoo may be for a certain artist, he doesn’t think he’ll ever be dedicated enough to drop bags of money on them. Besides, aren’t almost all the people in the industry cut from the same cloth? Sunoo wouldn’t be surprised if the ‘healing’ music aspect of it all was just some PR tactic used to gain popularity, and the general populace eats it right out of their hands.
☀️☀️☀️
“Alright, and that’s a wrap!”
The makeup artists surround him, dabbing the sweat that accumulated on his face from the beaming spotlights during the shoot.
The photo shoot had taken up a good chunk of his morning, and to say that Sunoo’s stomach was growling loudly was an understatement—He’s 70% sure he heard one of the makeup artists giggle at him each time his stomach made a sound.
He’d been thinking about the refreshment table in the studio all morning, and therefore made a beeline to it as soon as he was able to.
Naturally, he piles his plate with one of everything, not at all caring for the looks being thrown his way from these two camera people in the corner. First come first serve, Sunoo thinks, those two can go kick rocks and mind their business.
“Damn, is it that good?” He almost drops his plate from the voice behind that startles him, “Slow down, the food’s not going anywhere.”
Sunoo gasps, hand on his chest as he looks over and comes face to face with Park Sunghoon. God, not only does he have to hear about this man 24/7 but now Sunghoon has suddenly manifested into real life. “Wait—what are you doing here?”
He laughs, “I’m scheduled for a shoot later, and my manager’s pretty punctual. I’m here for the Calvin Klein shoot, isn’t that what you’re here for?”
Perks to having a pretty face, sometimes Sunoo gets randomly scouted on the bus ride home and is offered a check for a quick modeling shoot. So far he hasn’t been scammed yet and he’s gotten a pretty penny for just sitting in front of a camera, as well as the opportunity to meet celebrities. “Well yes, but, I was told the group shoot was for Jeon Jungkook…”
“About that, he dropped out last minute,” Sunghoon beams, “I’m his substitute.”
“So you’re telling me I don't get to model with Jungkook…?”
“Aw, cheer up. On the bright side, you get to model with me!”
If anyone were to look at Sunoo’s face right now, they’d know right away that he is not impressed in the slightest. “I’m heartbroken, I wanted to model with Jungkook! Not you.”
Yet, Sunghoon is smiling wide, “I never expected you to be here, I didn’t know you modeled.”
“Why would you? You don’t know me.” He wipes the excess crumbs from his mouth, “And you won’t get to, either. Goodbye.” He stuffs a tart in his mouth, walking away from the table, only to be pulled back by his arm.
“Wait, eat lunch with me,” Sunghoon offers. Sunoo reels his arm back, eyeing the idol suspiciously.
Sunoo squints his eyes. “Why?”
“Because I want to. I find you—what’s the word…” Sunghoon snaps his finger in hopes of arriving at the correct thought, “…intriguing.”
“That’s nice, but I’d rather swallow rocks than waste my break time spending it with you.”
“See, that’s what I’m talking about,” He ends up following Sunoo toward an empty seating area, sitting across from him. “Not once during my career has anyone given me this much attitude as you do… it’s like you don’t even care that I'm a highly revered idol.”
“Probably because I don’t care that you’re a highly revered idol.”
“Exactly my point!” Sunghoon folds his arms on the table, “I don’t understand it myself either, but I like how you behave with me. You keep me grounded.”
“So the reason you keep bothering me is because I inadvertently humbled you?” Is this a kink of his? If so, Sunoo wants absolutely no part of this. “You’re so weird…”
“Well, so are you! You seem to be the only person on earth immune to my charming personality,” Hmph, ‘charming’ his ass, “But even so, I want to keep talking to you.”
“Okay…” He braces himself for the oncoming headache he’s bound to get from talking to this guy, “What do you want to talk about?”
“For starters, it’s been around a month since we met by fate that night,” Sunghoon unusually starts waxing poetic, “Are you a fan of mine yet?”
“I haven’t streamed a single one of your songs since then.”
“So I’m guessing that’s a no…” He watches the idol’s shoulders deflate, “Not even for a few seconds?”
“What part of ‘not a single one of your songs’ did you not comprehend?”
Sunghoon leans back, “Here’s a thought: maybe if you weren’t so close-minded and gave my music a chance you might just surprise yourself.”
Sunoo scoffs, “Can’t a guy have his opinions? It’s not like I haven’t listened to any of your songs at all, my roommate’s obsessed with you so I have no choice but to—I’m not saying your music’s bad, it just isn’t my cup of tea.”
That gets Sunghoon to perk up, “What type of music do you listen to, then?”
“Um… mostly ballads and pop-”
“Oh that’s perfect!” He gets interrupted, “I have a ballad prepared as an OST for this drama that my label and I plan to drop a few weeks from now.”
“So it’s not even released…” The longer this conversation drags on the more brain cells he loses, “Whatever, it doesn’t matter anyway. The majority of your discography is all grunge-esque type music. It’s all too depressing, and I actually like being happy.”
“So you don’t quite hate my music, you just don’t typically listen to that genre…” He claps his hands together, “You know what? A win is a win.”
“…Is that all you got from that conversation?”
“A win is a win. So back to you being a model…” Sunghoon redirects the conversation, looking him up and down. “I guess that makes sense, you have the kind of face for it.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“It means that I’m saying you’re pretty.” The statement catches Sunoo off guard, causing his face to flare up red, which Sunghoon immediately points out, “Oh, this is the first time I’ve ever seen you smile-”
“And it’ll be the last time-” Ugh, Sunoo will never give this man the benefit of the doubt, “Are we finally done here? My breaks about to end soon and I really would like to finish my snacks before someone starts yelling at me to hurry up and go in makeup again.”
For a second it seems like Sunghoon dissociates, his face showing a sort of somber expression. At this Sunoo raises a brow, “Are you okay…?”
The idol then snaps out of whatever mood he was just in, flashing another smile, “Of course I’m okay! I’m perfect.” His smile seems forced, but Sunoo doesn’t care enough to call him out on it, “But you can’t leave me just yet, I need you to stream at least one of my songs.”
“…Has anyone told you before that you’re really persistent?” Sunoo says with the roll of his eyes. Seriously, who even cares this much that one guy doesn’t fit in with most of the world?
“Well, yes!” The idol takes as a compliment, “In the industry, you’ll get absolutely nowhere if you aren’t persistent. I swear on it, someday I will make you my fan.”
It seems so extreme for Sunghoon to swear on something like that, he might just die for lying on Sunoo’s name like that. “You have the whole of Korea falling to your knees already, who cares if someone like me doesn’t vibe with your music?”
“Because you probably aren’t the only one who feels this way,” He explains, “I don’t know, something about you or anyone else not liking my music rubs me the wrong way—it makes it feel like I’m not putting my all into my career.”
“…I guess I can kinda see where you’re coming from but again, everyone has different music tastes. I don’t think you’re talentless, I just prefer to hear something more upbeat. Maybe if you made a song like that I’d probably give it a listen on my own accord.”
Sunghoon briefly looks at his phone that buzzes with a notification and hides it, then stands, “Is that so? Then I’ll make an upbeat song just for you.” Behind him, Sunoo catches the eyes of a gruff looking, middle aged man with similar features to the idol wearing glasses sitting cross-legged in the corner who then stands just as Sunghoon does, not so discreetly eyeing them from his position.
“I also have to go, but I will have a song ready just for you, just gimme a couple of weeks.” He ends with an obnoxious wink.
“That’s… a bit much. You really don’t have to put out a whole new song just to impress-” Sunghoon steals one of the tarts from Sunoo’s plate, waving goodbye with the snack in his mouth as he leaves.
Sunoo’s mouth gapes, still not over the fact that he met a celebrity twice, said celebrity is gonna produce a whole song just so Sunoo could become a fan, and that he stole the last piece of fruit tart from his plate.
Jungwon will never believe this.
☀️☀️☀️
“You really didn’t need to walk me home, Riki,” The two had just arrived at Sunoo’s dorm building after coming home from work. The two were on the closing shift together and on their way back to campus it took Sunoo a bit too long to realize that instead of heading to the sophomore dorms located in the opposite direction, Riki accompanied him to where he was going.
The younger shrugs, “Why not? It’s not like I had anything else to do tonight anyways.”
“It’s a Saturday night, you should be getting ready to go party and get drunk or something, do it while you’re young, you know?” That all sounds like a perfect night to Sunoo, actually. He loves to party, and he probably would be pregaming and putting together a hot outfit for tonight if only he wasn’t so tired from work to go out.
“Nah, not tonight. I went out yesterday and woke up high and hungover, I might end up dead if I do it all again so soon,” He then smiles, “Besides, I’d rather keep you company instead.” Sunoo rolls his eyes in amusement, shying away from the younger male’s attempted flirts.
“Still… I should’ve been the one walking you home instead, I’m the older one.” Nishimura Riki, an international student from Japan Sunoo had met when he used to be the TA for the boy’s class last semester, and currently his coworker at his shitty retail store.
If Sunoo thought Sunghoon was persistent, Riki is leagues above him.
Back then he would often drop by Sunoo's office hours, waiting until the last minute to start the assignments just so he could have an excuse to ask for help.
But the boy was smart and definitely knew his stuff, his exam scores explained it all. So why would he bother with putting up the charade of the ‘slow’ student? The answer became clear when Sunoo soon realized that Riki only came to his office hours to flirt and to waste his time.
“You gotta be crazy or something,” An unhinged and then freshman Riki says out of the blue after finishing up a question on the homework Sunoo was helping him with, “You have to be, because why else would someone as pretty as you still be single?”
At first Sunoo blanked, not sure how to react to someone lowkey insulting him yet complimenting him in the same breath. He decided to ignore the question because as his TA it is highly inappropriate to discuss these things with a student, plus Sunoo would rather not explain that he’s mainly single because he was still in love with his ex at that point.
There would be little instances like that would continue on even till now, yet nothing ever came from it. When Jungwon’s nosy self would look down at his phone and get an eyeful of his and Riki’s messages he’d be in Sunoo’s ear saying stuff like, “He’s literally so in love with you, why don’t you at least give the poor boy a chance?”
And to that, Sunoo’s answer is simply because he doesn’t want to. Riki’s a nice guy, and he’s far from ugly too, but is it so bad for Sunoo to want somebody just a little more mature? Sunoo prefers someone older and has their life together. Riki isn’t quite that but it’s okay, he’ll be perfect for someone else.
Besides, Sunoo’s not sure if Riki even wants to pursue him seriously anyway. They’re friends for now, and that’s honestly enough.
Riki hastily stuffs his hands into his pockets, “But there was an actual reason why I wanted to walk you home. I had something to ask you.”
“What is it?”
“…I was wondering if you were free next Friday. There’s this street festival happening all weekend and I heard one of the stalls set up is gonna have that ube ice cream I know you were dying to try,” His voice picks up nervously, “Do you want to go with me?”
It sounds like he’s asking Sunoo on a date, and all the voices in Sunoo’s head shout at him to ask Riki if this is a date. He’s too nice to tell him no if the other boy confirms it to be one, but at the same time what if he just allows himself to enjoy this hangout? What if he ends up enjoying himself so much that he starts seeing the boy in a new light? He might surprise himself, Sunoo believes.
Ugh, he’s starting to sound like Jay. “Sure, I don’t think I’m doing anything.”
Riki breaks into a smile so wide you can hardly see his eyes, “Awesome. I can’t wait.”
Soon Sunoo bids him farewell and tells him to get home safe, and waits by the dorm building entrance until Riki’s out of sight. Satisfied, he goes inside and heads up the stairs, not at all surprised to come home once again to an empty dorm.
Jungwon must be in Jay’s apartment, again. Sunoo sighs as he drops his bag on the ground and takes off his shoes before beelining to his room, so ready to take a shower.
It would’ve been nice to have an impromptu roomie hangout tonight, a nice winding down from the hectic shift he had today. But Sunoo understands, if he had a loving and healthy relationship too with a partner that lives alone, he probably wouldn’t be in this dorm all too much either.
He gets his shower over with, lounges in his bed for an hour or so until he realizes he’s hungry, evident by the loud growl his stomach makes. Jay’s curry sounds really nice to eat right now, and maybe if he begged hard enough his best friend could make some for him at the last minute.
Sunoo thinks about calling him and almost does, but pauses. If Jay is with Jungwon right now then chances are they’re occupied doing other things. Or each other. Sunoo shudders at the image.
So that option’s a no go, and absolutely under no circumstance is he ordering takeout tonight either—The students on campus love taking other people's shit for some reason, Sunoo’s still too butthurt about the teriyaki special that was stolen from him last week.
Actually, Riki got into his head earlier about the ube ice cream. Sadly, the date (not date) isn’t until the end of the week so he can’t eat any right now, but anything sweet actually might satisfy his cravings.
He jumps out of his bed, the convenience store across the street from campus should be closing about an hour from now, if Sunoo hurries he can for sure make it.
☀️☀️☀️
“Oh my god—They never restocked this?” Sunoo complains to himself, muttering his frustrations as he stands in the freezer aisle with his mouth agape. His mood immediately sours, how could they not have the mint chocolate ice cream bar on a stick with caramel drizzle on the inside? He’s the only one who eats that shit anyway.
Actually, that’s probably the reason why they didn’t restock it. It still sucks though, this means he has to settle for the boring tub of vanilla instead.
He gets a message from his phone, just Jay sending him a TikTok. Doesn’t seem like Jay is busy so Sunoo presses his contact to complain to him.
“Hello?” He answers, “You saw the TikTok I sent, right? Isn’t that so us?”
“Totally,” Sunoo didn’t even watch it yet, “So like here’s the thing: I haven’t eaten anything since 2 earlier today and now I’m hungry but I can’t do takeout cus you know, trauma, so now I’m at the store across from school because I was craving my fav ice cream but they don’t have any more! What should I do?”
“How do they not have the mint thing you like, I’m pretty sure you’re the only one who eats that shit.”
“I know. So I’m basically out of options. It's not like I can eat the cheap ramen they sell here, my stomach doesn’t agree with it.”
“Yeah? And what do you want me to do about it?”
“I’m glad you asked! Since you love me and all cus I’m the bestest friend you’ve ever had, I was wondering if tomorrow you can cook me some of your delicious curry?” He asks, fingers crossed.
“You’re so bougie, eating cheap ramen for one night will not kill you,” Jay laughs, and that’s how Sunoo knows that he’s got him, “I guess I can cook something for all of us for Sunday dinner. You’re lucky I’m in the mood.”
“Ah, thank you, thank you, thank you!” He squeals in the middle of the store, “I love you so much, and tell Wonie I said hi.”
“He can hear you,” He says, and sure enough, “Hi, hyung!” Jungwon’s voice sounds through the device.
“Hey,” He smiles, “Anyways I’ll let you guys go—Oh fuck, I almost forgot to say this—You guys won’t believe this, but Riki asked me out today.”
He hears Jay snort, “Sounds very believable actually.”
“Didn’t we already establish that this guy is literally in love with you? Why are you so surprised?” Jungwon questions.
“I don’t know… I always thought he was joking. Like yeah he flirted with me a lot but it was never serious… right?”
“If you have to question it then maybe it wasn’t all fun and games on his part,” Jungwon reasons, and Sunoo could practically hear the eye roll in his voice, “Did you say yes?”
“I did. Can’t knock it until I try it, I guess.”
“Oh my gosh, this is so exciting! I’m so happy for you, seeing you in a relationship again is gonna be so cute.”
“You seem more excited than he is,” Sunoo could imagine Jay pinching Jungwon’s cheeks to tease him further.
“Well duh, they’re my OTP.”
“Your… what? Is that slang?”
“I dunno about all of that… But as I said before I’m just gonna go and not think too deeply about it. If I like it, then great. If I don’t, I’m sure he’ll understand,” It should be fine regardless of his feelings, because Riki’s easygoing like that. That’s why Sunoo talks to him, he’s fun and uncomplicated.
“Right. Well, I’m getting tired so I’m gonna go,” Jay takes control of his phone, “I’ll get the ingredients tomorrow and swing by your dorm to cook. For now, enjoy your shitty ramen.”
“Oh, fuck you-” Sunoo glances to his side and does a double take—Why is he here? “Yeah, um. See you tomorrow.” Even after they end the phone call Sunoo still keeps the phone held up near his ear, too distracted with squinting at the familiar face digging through the ice cream freezer Sunoo had previously stood in front of.
He wonders if he should take the chance, call his name or something to get his attention but quickly decides against it. Doesn’t this guy claim to be super famous or something, why the hell is he in a 7/11 on a random Saturday night?
Turns out he doesn’t have to do anything, because Sunghoon ends up looking his way.
“W-What are you doing here?” Sunoo ends up blurting out. The idol’s in his disguise, the all black outfit coupled with the sunglasses and face mask. It’s a poor disguise considering Sunoo was able to recognize him in a split second.
“I’m looking for a sweet treat, obviously,” Sunghoon says just as he closes the freezer door and holds up a box of the stupid drumstick ice cream. He pulls his face mask down to talk properly, “But, how did you know it was me?”
“You’re literally wearing the same exact clothes back when I first met you.”
“Oh,” He stares, dumbly, “Well, no one else recognized me-”
“But they will-” Sunoo walks up to him and instinctively pulls his face mask back up, “Any minute now drunk college students are gonna come in here ready to ransack the place looking for alcohol before they head to their parties.” Sunoo’s been there, done that.
From what he can barely see behind Sunghoon’s dark sunglasses, his eyes grow wide, “…Wow. It sounds like you’re starting to care about me-”
“It’s not that I suddenly care—I just don’t wanna be caught in the mob once everyone realizes that you’re you.” They both stick out like a sore thumb: Sunoo’s in pjs and Sunghoon’s dressed like he came with the intention to rob the place. Everyone else is gonna come dressed to party.
Sunghoon seems to understand and nods, “Makes sense. Then we’ll just leave before that happens.”
“Uh, we…?” Sunoo barely has time to react before the idol tugs him by his arm in the direction of the cashier. The wait isn’t that long since barely anyone’s in here yet so the unhappy looking cashier gets to scanning Sunghoon’s items first.
“Are you getting that?” Sunghoon asks him, pointing to Sunoo’s own tub of ice cream that he picked up.
“Well yeah, but-” It’s snatched from him before he could finish and it’s given to the cashier to be scanned along with Sunghoon’s other stuff. Sunoo tugs on his sleeve, “Wait, what are you doing?”
“Paying for our stuff,” He says, nonchalantly.
“I can see that—I meant why.”
What he gets in response is a simple shrug, and the purchased bag of all their items is handed back to Sunghoon who doesn’t even wait for Sunoo as he swiftly exits the store.
Speechless, Sunoo wordlessly follows after him. That guy is so rude, how does anyone even like him? That persona he puts on for his fans must be real charming because his real life one is obnoxious as hell, he thinks.
“Uh, hello? You took my ice cream-” He gives Sunghoon a piece of his mind when he finally catches up to him outside. Sunoo snatches the bag from him and digs through it until he finds what he’s looking for.
“You’re so loud, aren’t you the same one who told me that I shouldn’t draw too much attention?” Sunghoon smirks, treating this whole encounter like a damn joke, “And you never said thanks for buying your ice cream.”
“Shut up,” He retaliates, forcing the bag he took back into the idol's arms, “But thanks. And goodbye.”
“Wait-” Sunghoon calls him back as soon as he turns around, and he even starts following him, “I finally see you again after who knows how long and you’re just gonna leave so soon?”
It’s only been around two weeks since the Calvin Klein shoot, “So? It’s not like we know each other that well.”
“Exactly. That’s why I want to get to know you, but you keep running away from me every time we meet.”
“Because you’re weird! The first time we met you attacked me and on the day of the shoot during my break you held me hostage to talk when all I wanted was to eat.”
“That’s not exactly how things went down and you’re actually very dramatic, but it’s okay! It honestly makes talking to you fun,” And Sunghoon has the audacity to grin at this like this is a comedy, “Do you know why I’m interested in you?”
Sunoo keeps walking, “I don’t, but please, enlighten me.”
“Because in the industry I’m surrounded by the same old, stuck up, boring people all the time. No one in that crowd is authentic enough for me to even be interested in holding a conversation with them. But you,” Sunghoon moves in front of him, walking backwards to continue their convo, “You’re not afraid to speak your mind at all. You keep it real, so I wanna be friends.”
“So all you want out of me is friendship…?”
“To tell you the truth, I believe I’m stuck in a rut,” They walk side by side now, “I couldn’t help but keep thinking about what you said to me at the shoot, about how my music isn’t your cup of tea. I went through the entirety of my discography from these past two years and noticed something so embarrassing—I’ve been sticking to similar and comfortable song formulas all this time, It made me realize that I haven’t really grown as an artist since I first started. I want to change that.”
His dorm building comes into view, “…And how will you?”
“That’s where you come in: You’re the one that helped me come to this realization, I figured that if I continue to seek you out it’ll help me improve musically—in a way, you’re my muse.”
“A muse?” Sunoo almost laughs. Park Sunghoon considers some ordinary college student his muse, “I’m very flattered, believe me, but surely my words didn’t affect you that much. You’re Park Sunghoon, the idol who’s adored by the whole country. If the majority loves your music then why change it?”
“Because I don’t love it.”
That takes Sunoo off guard, but mostly because he’s confused. How does the number one idol not love his own music? “Huh?”
“Music’s important to me, it’s my life,” The idol emphasizes, “If my heart’s not 100% in it then what’s the point in me doing it? I wasn’t happy with my recent single releases anyway, it’s all radio play BS and not quite what I envisioned it to be but my label pushed it anyway. Do you know what it’s like to produce something you hate but the general public loves? It makes me feel worthless as an artist.”
Sunoo wouldn’t know how that feels, he’s only a listener after all, same as the rest of the world. Seeing the idol actually seem genuine for once makes him feel a little guilty for trashing his artistry. Sunoo never meant for him to go through a whole crisis.
That’s when he suddenly remembers they’re outside, hearing the partygoers babbling all around. With too many people around there’s bound to be someone who will recognize Sunghoon’s stupid disguise. Sunoo quickly pushes him into the building of his dorm and into the elevator, not because he cares but only because it will cause more trouble for himself.
“Thanks for um, shielding me from everyone,” Sunghoon says, unusually shy, choosing to stare at the elevator's floor. He clenched tightly onto the bag he’s holding, “Also, I’m sorry for… all of that. I didn’t mean to dump that on you.”
Sunoo sighs, “…It’s fine. I’m sorry too, for being a bitch for no reason. I’m usually nicer, I swear.”
The idol chuckles, and hearing it makes Sunoo believe that the man does have some sort of charm. “Don’t worry, I believe you.”
The elevator soon reaches Sunoo’s floor and Sunghoon follows him out of it and to his door. “So this is what the inside of a college dorm looks like…” He hears Sunghoon mutter to himself, looking around in awe as if he’s never seen anything like it before.
“What, is this your first time in a college or something?”
“Kind of? It’s just that I do college classes online so I never had the chance to experience dorm life.” He pulls his face mask down and takes his sunglasses off, following Sunoo into the kitchen. “I like what you’ve done to the place.”
“Thanks,” Sunoo accepts the compliment as he gets a spoon for himself to eat his ice cream with, “Jungwon, my roommate, and I really wanted our dorm to feel homey so we kinda went all out with the decorations.”
“That’s cool. Where is he now?”
“He’s at his boyfriend’s place currently, so it’s just us here alone.”
They settle in the living room where they both sit on the couch, eating each of their ice creams in peace. Sunoo would’ve never guessed how comfortable it would be to sit in silence eating desserts with Sunghoon, the number one yapper he knows other than Jay. It’s more surreal actually, considering who exactly Sunghoon is.
It’s not like it’s normal for a famous idol to be chilling in a random college student’s dorm close to midnight, which brings the question as to why he’s even here in the first place, “Is there a reason why you were near campus? I would figure someone as popular as you would be buried in schedules or something, especially on a weekend.”
“Good question. Surprisingly, I had nothing booked for the past few days so I was able to chill out and work on some side projects to help me get out of my slump,” He explains, “I figured if I surrounded myself more with people my age I’d get some sort of inspiration? So I was sneaking around the campus for a couple of hours just sightseeing, writing down anything that came to mind that could be used for possible lyrics later on. It got late, I got hungry, and that’s when I ran into you at the store,” Sunghoon does that stupid smirk again, “Don’t you think it’s fate that we ran into each other thrice by coincidence?”
“That’s cute, but I don’t believe in that stuff.”
“It makes for a good song, though,” He licks some of his ice cream, and Sunoo looks away quickly after realizing how creepy he’s being for staring so hard at his tongue. “Do you mind if we keep talking about random topics like this, or just about our lives in general? I think it’ll really help me creativity wise, bringing me organic thoughts from someone I know nothing about to help evolve my music somehow.”
Sunghoon’s really serious about his music… Sunoo might’ve judged him too harshly at first. “I don’t mind, but be prepared—Once I start talking I’m told I can never shut up. And, I must require your full attention.”
The idol nods and makes it a point to show Sunoo that he switched his phone on Do Not Disturb. He places it on his lap and folds his hands over it, “You have my undivided attention.”
Sunoo ignores how his heart leaps at the gesture, “…Okay, what do you wanna know?”
“Well… do you have any friends?”
Sunoo has plenty of friends, all for different things. He has study buddies, his coworkers that he gossips with all day long instead doing their actual jobs, and the friends he parties with and they all get fucked up together.
But friends that he talks to a lot and actually hangs out with daily as well as someone to confide in, Sunoo guesses he only has two of those: Jay and Jungwon. “I have two close ones, mainly. My roommate Jungwon and his boyfriend Jay who’s been my best friend for seven years. I can talk to them about literally anything.”
“Your two best friends are dating?” Sunghoon tilts his head in confusion, “How does that work?”
“It works better than you think it would, probably because those two aren’t the kind of couple that shove their PDA in your face. You probably wouldn’t even guess they were a couple if you didn’t know them.” On the surface you would just assume they were just really good friends, but look too close and you’d realize that they both have matching couple rings and that their outfits practically coordinate everyday.
Sunoo remembers like it was yesterday that those two got together. Heartbroken over the end of his last relationship (Jay values loyalty over everything, his ex was anything but), his best friend slipped into a state of depression and shut himself off for a while.
Enter Jungwon, whom Sunoo had shared an elective with and was only his classmate before they became roommates. Sunoo invited him to his old dorm to work on a project together and ran into Jay who also was waiting outside his dorm to collect something from him.
Sunoo arrived late in meeting them since a class held him late, and caught them both sitting on the floor with their backs against the door talking animatedly with each other.
It was the first time he’s seen Jay genuinely laugh in a while. Sunoo honestly couldn’t believe his eyes but he was happy to see his best friend smile again.
The months went by and they grew closer, eventually they sat Sunoo down and confessed that they’ve been dating for a while at that point. They seriously brought him to a family diner of all places like they’re his parents announcing they’re having another kid or something.
“They seem cute together,” Sunghoon comments after scrolling through the photos Sunoo showed him on his camera roll of the three of them.
“…They really are.” He takes back his phone. In all, Sunoo was happy for them, he kinda saw it coming anyway. In his opinion, Jungwon was exactly what Jay needed to finally have the light back in his eyes after his ex previously destroyed his self worth.
“You seem sad, though, all of a sudden,” When Sunoo looks back at him, Sunghoon’s already staring.
“…Am I?”
“Your smile doesn’t quite reach your eyes anymore.” He leans in slightly, seemingly trying to get a better look at his eyes, “Do you want to talk about it?”
In response he just sighs, what does he have to lose telling Sunghoon stuff he hasn’t told anyone else? Not much, “Truth is, I’m jealous of them. Jay and Jungwon. Every day I have to witness how much they love each other, meanwhile I can only wish for what they have.”
Sunghoon awkwardly places his hand on Sunoo’s knee in an attempt to reassure him. “I’m sure that kind of love will find you one day.”
Sunoo hopes that day comes sooner, “It honestly sucks, you know? Because I know they know I feel this way so they try their best to not make me seem like a third wheel whenever we all hangout but I still can’t help but feel the way I feel.” Sunoo believes that to be the reason why Jungwon tries to push Riki on him, thinking that if he were to get together with him it would help stop his self pity.
Sunghoon takes his hand away, “I understand how you feel… Sometimes I wish to be loved, too.”
“Seriously? I highly doubt that.” Sunoo reacts, closing his tub of ice cream to save for later, “You’re Park Sunghoon, people literally worship you.”
“The issue is because I’m Park Sunghoon. All that ‘love’ is mostly superficial. They just see my pretty face and my net worth, but no one really cares about who I am as a person.”
“…That is rough,” Sunoo didn’t even think that Sunghoon would have problems in the dating world as well, just assumed he’d have no problem finding somebody given that so many people kiss the ground he walks on. “Do you even have time to date?”
He laughs, but it’s sad, “That’s the thing, I don’t. I can’t even complain that I have no one like that because I probably wouldn’t even have time for them anyway—I’m too busy with my schedules as of right now.”
Considering his name trends in the top 5 in all blogs Sunoo doesn’t doubt that he’s highly in demand. He did a paper on celebrity culture once, and he’s researched just how inhumane their schedules and working conditions could be because of their popularity. “Can I ask you something?”
“Oh? Finally interested me? Did my boyish charms finally get through to you-”
“I forgot to ask you this before but why were you even out so late in the first place, and by yourself at that. I would expect an A-list celebrity like you to be surrounded by groupies 24/7 or even bodyguards.”
“Most of the time I am, yeah, but sometimes I just wanna be alone and explore the city,” He explains, fiddling with his fingers, “It gets so exhausting being in the public eye all the time, like of course I love my music and my fans but I need time to myself. That night I ran into you, I technically snuck out to go outside.”
“And then you ended up being chased by sasaengs and kidnapped me to help you get away,” Sunoo snorts, “First of all, have you ever heard of stranger danger? I could’ve been a bad person who could’ve taken advantage of you, or even worse I could’ve been one of your crazy fans and locked you in my basement forever.” Even this whole thing right now with Sunghoon is weird, Sunoo literally pushed him into the elevator to avoid being spotted and took him to his dorm.
The idol shrugs, “You looked trustworthy, and my intuition told me that I would be safe with you.”
“With that kind of logic I can kinda see why your management hovers around you all the time. I’m not sure if you grew up sheltered or not but someone of your caliber needs to be cautious at all times… Not that I suddenly care about you or anything but things seriously could’ve gone left for you if I hadn’t been there when I was.” It’s funny, had Sunoo not missed that train, Korea's heartthrob might've been used as ransom or something.
“Believe me, I know that,” Sunghoon defends, “My dad—I mean, my manager chews me out for it all the time. I was caught, and suddenly there he was by my side 24/7…”
“Your dad is your manager?”
Sunghoon bites his lip, “…Yeah. It’s not really public information but sometimes I accidentally let it slip like I did just now… please don’t tell anyone.”
Seeing the usually overconfident idol appear kind of timid before him is kind of adorable. Or maybe it’s just the dim lighting, “It’s fine, I won’t tell anyone. It’s not like that kind of information means anything to me anyways, I’m not your fan remember?”
“Oh-ho, but you will be soon! I swear on it, someday I will make you my fan.” Sunghoon shifts to a better position, fully facing him, “You remember that song I told you that I’d write for you?”
“You were actually serious about that?”
“Mhm,” He plays with the phone in his lap, “I got around to writing it, and it’s literally so different from what I usually put out yet it still holds my unique sound… I’m actually so proud of it.”
Sunoo’s impressed by his effort, “Only the lyrics? Do you have them? Can I see?”
Sunghoon unlocks his phone to show him the notes of the lyrics he typed up, and to be honest the words written down were pure poetry, totally swoon worthy. “Last time you told me you liked ballads, so I tried experimenting with that type of sound as well while also incorporating a bit of my own flare just so I wasn’t too bored with it,” The idol looks at him with a proud smile, leaning in again to reread his lyrics, “I got a new guitar recently to record the melodies, though I’m still trying to figure out the right chords.”
“You can play guitar?” Sunoo hands him back his phone, amazed, “I thought you just sang songs.”
“I also dance, model, ice skate—I even cameoed in a drama once so acting is a part of my long roster of talents as well,” He finishes off his boasting.
“I’m sorry, ice skating?”
“You really don’t know anything about me, do you?” Sunghoon muses.
“I would never lie about that. I don’t even know when your birthday is.”
Sunghoon grins, “December 8th.”
“So you’re a Sag. Makes sense why I find you annoying—Sagittarius men are the worst.”
“You don’t believe in fate yet you believe in astrology? Pick a struggle.”
“Yeah, yeah—Now explain the ice skating thing! We’re not just gonna skip over that.”
And that’s how Sunoo ends up going down a rabbit hole of learning about the lore of Park Sunghoon. He was shown videos from years before the idol had even hit the stage, back during his ice skating days as a child. Little Sunghoon was dancing all around the ice with a very focused expression, it seems even as a kid Sunghoon always put his all into his interests.
Sunoo gushes over the video clips, “You were so adorable as a child.”
“I certainly was, and I’ve only gotten finer with age,” Sunghoon leans back against the couch, crossing his arms, “I just get handsomer as I age.”
“That isn’t even a word.”
“Doesn’t matter. There are no words that exist in our vocabulary that can fully describe how handsome I am,” He grins, “I’ve had people faint in front of me because they couldn’t handle my aura.”
Sunghoon is very handsome, Sunoo will give him that. He’s not gonna give him the satisfaction of admitting that, though, “You were so good at skating, what made you stop?”
The idol shrugs, “I had better opportunities, I suppose. I first started learning the piano at twelve years old, and that’s when I think I started to fall in love with music,” He brings his knees up to his chest, “I wanted to learn more so I begged my dad for singing lessons, tweaked my dancing skills, and some years later I was scouted. I didn’t get into songwriting until my late trainee days but I think now it’s my favorite part about creating music.”
“Then you debuted…” Sunoo finishes his sentence. Hearing Sunghoon’s story makes him wonder what the hell is he doing with his life. He has barely any accomplishments compared to the idol and they’re only a year apart, as he’s just recently learned.
“It’s one hell of a career change, I know. My coaches back then begged me not to quit because they had visions of me becoming an Olympic athlete one day, but my heart was somewhere else,” He reminisces, hugging his own knees, “I don’t regret my decision, though, because look where it brought me; I’m now making music that reaches the hearts of millions of people.”
Sunghoon’s achievements so far are definitely a ‘fuck you’ to those who doubted him, just look at how successful he is. “I have a similar story, though I kinda went the opposite route,” He starts, a bit nervous to share this story, “When I was younger I was the head of my school’s choir, and I did a lot of plays because I absolutely love musicals.”
“Oh my god… you were a theater kid-” Sunghoon says as if it’s some sort of blackmail material that could be used against Sunoo later on, “That explains why you’re so dramatic.”
“I prefer the term ‘expressive’,” Sunoo hisses as he corrects him, “Back in highschool they nicknamed me Sunny because my vocal tone sounded ‘bright’ and ‘refreshing’ to them, whatever that meant.”
“Sunny?”
“Yeah, short for Sunoo,” That’s when he realizes, “Wait, did I ever tell you my name?”
“You didn’t. I had no idea what to refer to you as without sounding awkward, so I was waiting for the right time to ask for your name,” Sunghoon confesses with a breathy laugh, “Su-noo. Sunooooo. Sunoo,” Sunghoon tests the name on his lips, staring at him while he does, “That’s a nice name.”
Sunoo glances away, blushing. “Yeah, I know. Don’t wear it out.”
“So you can sing?” The idol presses, “Sing me something.”
“H-Hell no!” Sunoo sputters, “Don’t just put me on the spot like that!”
“Awe, why not? I’m sure you have a nice voice anyway if your speaking voice is anything to go by,” Sunoo hates himself for blushing at that throwaway comment, “You could be background vocals for my song if you want,” He teases.
“S-Shut up. I’m not gonna sing for you, especially not at this hour.”
Sunghoon chuckles, “Come on, it’s only-”
That’s when the front door unexpectedly bursts open, and enters a weirdly twitchy Jungwon who frantically pulls off his shoes after slamming the door shut behind him.
Thinking quickly, Sunoo forces Sunghoon’s head down his lap and scrounges his hoodie more in his face to obscure it before his roommate sees him and literally screams. “Jungwon—What are you doing here early?”
Finally paying him some mind, Sunoo could see in his face that he’s very pissed, “It’s very early indeed! There’s no reason why I should be awake on a Sunday at 6 am.”
“6 am?” Sunoo hastily grabs his phone to fact-check the time, and sure enough, “What the hell…?” The last time he checked the time it was close to midnight, and all he did after that was chat with Sunghoon about random bullshit. Have they seriously been talking all night? “Wait, why are you here?”
“I forgot I had an interview for my internship scheduled today at nine but I already planned to stay the night with Jay—But then I suddenly remember it in the middle of the night so I jumped out of bed and ran over here to get ready and collect my things since it’s like two train rides away. It sucks, who the fuck schedules an interview on a Sunday? Who even works on a Sunday?” He spits out all at once, “Wait, what are you doing up? Did you even go to sleep?”
“Well… I-” He makes the mistake of looking down too long at his lap, making Jungwon come closer and get curious too, peering over.
“Who the hell is that?”
“It’s um. Uh. It’s Riki?” Sunoo lies straight through his teeth. Sunghoon’s discreetly shifts, hiding his face more in his lap. “And quiet down—He’s sleeping.”
“Holy shit, you actually went through with it. Even spent the whole night keeping eachother up, if you know what I mean.” Jungwon stands towering over them on the couch with his arms folded, smiling way too devilishly for Sunoo’s liking.
“W-Whatever…” Sunoo flushes from the embarrassment. Why did he even say it was Riki anyway? Now Jungwon’s never gonna let him live this down. “Hey, don’t you have somewhere to be?”
Remembering that he was just previously mad Jungwon steps away, “Fuck, that’s right. Hyung, you distracted me-” His roommate runs back to his room and Sunoo assumes he’s getting ready to take a shower.
He ruffles Sunghoon to tell him the coast is clear. “You gotta go.”
“I know,” He watches Sunghoon rise from his lap, and for some reason the idol’s features look softer than usual. “Is it really 6 am? I’ve definitely overstayed my welcome,” He then rises from the couch, searching for his phone that slipped in between the cushions. “Fuck, I was never supposed to stay out this long.”
Sunoo thinks it’s the first time he’s ever heard him curse, yet it sounds so soft when he says it. Everything that comes out of Sunghoon’s mouth sounds so gentle, he realizes, even his mannerisms. Even now when he should be panicking that he accidentally spent the night in a random person’s dorm and someone almost discovered his identity, he remains calm.
He follows Sunghoon to the door, “You won’t get in trouble for staying out this late, will you?”
Sunghoon’s eyes stay glued to his phone, “Oh, I’m in big trouble… I haven’t answered anyone’s calls or messages all night, no one knows where I am.” He sighs, “The rest of today’s gonna be so tiring.”
Sunoo glances down the hall to check if Jungwon’s left his room yet, “You should go. Trust me when I say Jungwon’s the last one you’d want to spot you.”
“Wait,” Sunghoon stops him before he’s fully pushed out of the door, “I don’t know when I’ll see you again,” He says, sadly, “Spoilers but: I’m in the middle of working on an album as well as preparing for my tour. I don’t know how we’ll meet again but I want to keep talking to you.”
Sunoo can’t deny that he did enjoy having Sunghoon’s company all night considering that he didn’t realize that the hours had passed them by. It helped the little loneliness he was feeling before too, after coming home to a yet again empty dorm.
Sunghoon’s an interesting character for sure, there is so much of his past that Sunoo didn’t even know nor cared for until now, and he’s sure there’s still more of him to uncover. But what is it about himself that Sunghoon finds so interesting? At the end of the day, he’s just a random guy.
“Hand me your phone,” He decides, and yet again Sunghoon trusts him with it. Ignoring everything else Sunoo clicks and types in his contact info, “I’m giving you my number, if you wanna talk just message me.”
“Thank you,” He says with sincerity, taking his phone back, “I never made a friend so organically before.”
“Organically?”
“Yeah, all of my friends are also industry people, so while they’re cool and all I was kinda forced to befriend them since we were always around each other,” He explains, “But as I said, meeting you was fate. You don’t care who I am at all, and you knew barely anything about me too. It’s like a fresh slate for me.”
“Friends…” Sunoo repeats his words, “Damn, am I considered one of your groupies now?”
Sunghoon laughs, shaking his head. He pulls up back his face mask, “I’ll see you.”
“…See ya,” Sunoo stands there awkwardly with his hands behind his back, wondering if he should hug him goodbye like he does with all his friends. But Sunghoon is already out the door before he can decide what to do, so he closes the door behind him and yawns.
He’s starting to feel the effects of his lack of sleep.
“Did Riki just leave?” Jungwon slithers out of his room in nothing but a towel wrapped around his hips.
“Yeah,” Sunoo yawns again and moves towards him, only to lightly push him in his shoulder, “You didn’t hear anything, did you?” Sunoo wouldn’t put it past him to not immediately recognize Sunghoon’s voice or something.
“Nope! I didn’t see nor hear a thing,” He then wiggles his eyebrows, “Why, nervous I might’ve seen something? Did you give him a goodbye kiss-”
“Jungwon, just go shower-” Sunoo has to physically put him in the bathroom to stop the teasing and shuts him in, ignoring his roommate’s maniacal laughs. Though he can’t see himself Sunoo can tell his face is red and hot from embarrassment.
He quickly gets his phone that he left on the couch and notices he already got a message from the unknown number:
Thank you, is all it reads.
☀️☀️☀️
Looking back, Sunoo wondered why he was so nervous about his date with Riki. All week long he was dreading going, his anxiety growing as the day slowly approached. Jay told him he was just being dramatic and that everything would be fine—Sunoo told him to politely go to hell, and Jungwon just laughed.
Despite popular belief, he doesn’t think he’s being dramatic. Why? Because Riki’s his friend, and yeah Sunoo’s all for a cute friends to lovers story (his favorite, mind you), but if hypothetically something goes wrong, it’s going to be awkward as hell.
They’re coworkers, for one, and Sunoo’s already miserable at work because who isn’t when you work retail? Plus there’s the guilt that would weigh in his stomach if the date turned out awful, considering the supposed ‘crush’ the younger has on him.
As per their plans, Riki brought him to the street festival that came to town to try all the delicious samples of the local food stores that set up their stalls. As promised, Riki treated him to the ube ice cream Sunoo had been craving since forever, sharing it together after making their rounds on all the stalls.
Everything was going super well, until it didn’t.
“Sucks that we got rained on…” He murmurs, tightening his hold on the jacket on his head that’s being used as a makeshift hood.
Neither of them had an umbrella, but Riki wordlessly gave him his jacket to wear over his head to shield him from the rain. “I know—The forecast didn’t even say anything about rain either…” Riki shakes his head rapidly in an effort to dry his hair faster.
They were able to take refuge in a nearby popular bookstore chain, deciding to explore it while they waited for the rain to clear a little.
“Do you read?” Sunoo asks, running his fingers along the spines of the books on the shelf.
“Only when I have to,” Riki replies, looking elsewhere. Following his gaze Sunoo notices him eyeing the rack of music albums. “So really only my textbooks and shit. I was never much of a bookworm.”
“It seems like you’re more of a music type of guy,” Sunoo goes closer. Makes sense for Riki to be one, Sunoo doesn’t think he’s ever seen the younger without his pair of headphones on his head. Even during work, “We’re the same, in that regard.”
“Are we?” Riki humors him, “What do you listen to?”
“Pop, mostly. I like the happy shit, you know?”
“Pop, huh? That’s cute,” He smiles at him, “I should’ve expected that, it suits you.”
“Does it?”
“Yeah. Usually when I ask people that question I get the same, boring response. ‘It’s R&B’,” He mocks.
Sunoo snorts, “What’s wrong with that?”
“Nothing, considering I like it too,” Riki moves on to the vinyl section and Sunoo follows, “But like, music is way broader than that and for some reason it pisses me off when people tend to stick to one sound only, then shit on other people for listening to something different.”
“Speaking from experience?”
“I definitely am. I used to get dogged on for my playlists, people would physically frown at the song choices I’d play at a hangout or something because it didn’t ’fit in’ with their usual tastes,” He explains, bitterly, “When it comes to music I listen to anything and everything—As long as it sounds good to my ears.”
“Even country music?”
“Even that.”
In a way, Sunoo understands where he’s coming from. “I get it. That’s how I feel when people always bring up Park Sunghoon when the topic of music comes up.”
Riki pauses, “Wait, you don’t like Park Sunghoon?”
“Are you saying you do?” Sunoo questions. He’s honestly very surprised, it didn’t seem like Riki was the type.
But then again, the latter did go on a tangent just now about how he listens to literally everything—Sunoo should’ve figured that Sunghoon was included. “I mean, I’m no diehard fan or anything but I do see the appeal.” Riki then digs for what Sunoo thought to be a random artist’s vinyl, but upon further inspection it’s the vinyl of none other than the very idol in question, “His last mini album was honestly a solid 9/10 for me, and that’s very high considering it’s me. I take my album critiques very seriously.”
“That high…?” What if Sunoo’s the problem here, are his ears just broken? How come he doesn’t get the luxury of finding Sunghoon’s songs easy to listen to like everyone else? Life would certainly be a lot easier if he did.
“But like you said before,” Riki continues, inspecting the price of the vinyl and probably deciding in his head if it’s worth it or not, “I can understand why his songs aren’t easy to digest for you—You like pop and upbeat stuff, and Sunghoon’s not really known for that. However,” He puts the vinyl back, clearly having made his decision and pulls out his phone, “He released a new song out of nowhere, at like midnight. I listened to it earlier and it’s so different from his usual sound, I think you’ll like it.”
Riki struggles for a while with untangling his earbuds, then hands Sunoo the left bud so they can listen to it on his phone. “How different is this one?”
“For one, Sunghoon’s known for his ridiculous long ass song titles. People make jokes about it all the time but it’s all fun—One of my favorite songs of his is ‘Bruises From My Tiny Jean Shorts.’”
He’s heard about that, courtesy of Jungwon who’s all time favorite tracks are, and he quotes, ‘The Bird In My Hair That I Hate’ and ‘Ballad of a Deranged Nineteen Year Old’, which was ironic, since that song wasn’t a ballad at all.
Focusing his attention on Riki’s screen, he could see at first glance what he was talking about. The title of the song was rather short and straight to the point, “Pretty Boy.”
The instrumental of soft synths start the song until Sunghoon’s graceful and light vocals begin fifteen seconds in. The melody, the lyrics, his voice, Sunoo was in love with every aspect of the song. He could hear the yearning in Sunghoon’s voice. The impending doom that love could do to a person, something Sunoo looks for in every song he chooses to listen to. There weren't any of the usual harsh guitars in the instrumental, depressing undertones, or anything else that would otherwise turn him off from a song.
Everything seemed different, but it was still Sunghoon.
The moon keeps me away yet gravity’s pulling me closer to you
Wish I was normal, forced to be a fool begging for a pretty boy.
Sunoo considers himself a sponge when it comes to listening to music: He absorbs the energy that songs give off, which is why he prefers to listen to stuff that is more lighthearted. Sunghoon’s music is the opposite of that, and yet this song was perfect in Sunoo’s eyes—It’s everything he likes and more.
“This song feels different, too, in a way, but I like it a lot. I wonder who he’s talking about.” Riki points out as it comes to an end. Neither of them had spoken a word as the song played, “The lyrics though, they kind of remind me of you.”
“What about the lyrics does it remind you of me?”
“Well, the line, ‘pretty boy’, mostly,” Riki quips, “Should I stop now or continue feeding your ego with compliments?” Sunoo laughs, hiding his pink face.
Sunoo also paid special attention to the lyrics. When he listened he couldn’t help but feel nostalgic as he listened to every bit of Sunghoon’s honey coated words. It wasn’t until the chorus was repeated for the last time that he realized that there was a reason why the lyrics were so familiar—It was the short snippet of words Sunghoon shared with him the last time they met, lyrics to the song the idol wrote just so he could impress him.
He’s really outdone himself, Sunoo admits, ashamed of his blush and biting his lip to keep himself from smiling wider.
☀️☀️☀️
“What’s on your phone that’s so funny?” Jay calls him out, forcing Sunoo out of his bubble to look up and pay attention.
Finals are just next week, and their little trio decided to study in a local diner near campus. Except, Jay stopped studying thirty minutes ago and is on his phone, Jungwon didn’t even open his laptop the whole time they’ve been here and is also on his phone, and Sunoo is rightfully on his phone during his five minute break, as per the Pomodoro study method.
But of course that phone time gets interrupted because apparently Sunoo isn’t allowed to smile at his phone anymore, “Huh?”
“Oh god, he went deaf sooner than I expected,” Jungwon speaks next, resting his head on Jay’s shoulder, “I’m telling you, hyung, you can’t keep having your headphones on the highest possible volume anymore or else your eardrums will explode.”
“That will not happen-” Sunoo argues, “And what are you, my mom?”
“No, we’re your friends that you should be paying attention to instead,” His eyes flicker down to Sunoo’s phone, “Who are you texting, your boyfriend? Tell Riki I said hi.”
“You’re not funny. And I’m texting no one,” What Sunoo was not expecting next was for Jungwon to lean over the whole table to catch a glimpse, “Jungwon-”
“Definitely looked like a text thread to me,” He grins like the little devil he is, “Who’s ‘bestie’, then?”
“It’s as the name suggests, my best friend.”
“You have other friends?”
“Shut up Jay—Of course I do. I have more friends than you do-”
“Ouch.”
Jay and Jungwon whisper amongst themselves, very unsubtly, but Sunoo doesn’t have it in him to care as he receives another text.
[BESTIE]:
*Attachment: 4 images attached*
which 2 should I post
They all look the same
[BESTIE]:
no they don’t the angles are all slightly different
i look hot don’t I 😩
I’m not going to give u the compliment you’re looking for 😂😂
You have your fans for that
[BESTIE]:
but I want ur opinion
after all my clout afterwards relies solely on what photos you choose for me
choose wisely or else I’ll be really sad 😔😔😔
You look the best in photos 2 and 3
[BESTIE]:
thx I’m posting them now
the hoes are gonna love these 😍😍
“Oh my god, everybody shut up—My husband just posted-” Jungwon fakes a faint against the diner chairs, looking so focused on his phone as he presumably hearts and comments all over Sunghoon’s newly posted photos. He shoves the phone in his and Jay’s faces so they could admire, too, “Fuck, he’s so hot.”
“Period-” Sunoo responds out of instinct and out of turn. Both of his friends give him a look, while he scrambles for an excuse in his head, “I mean… Um. Oh, what the hell am I making excuses for—We’re all aware how fine he is.”
“Well… I knew this, but you? A few months ago you didn’t even want to admit that.”
“Hey, why are you only getting on my case? Jay never admitted it either.”
“Because Jay’s reason makes sense—He’s jealous of my parasocial relationship with Sunghoon. You on the other hand hated him for no reason.”
“I never hated him per say, just his music-”
“And yet I could’ve sworn I heard you singing along to ‘Pretty Boy’ in the shower the other day.” Jungwon puts the final nail in the coffin, cornering him.
Fuck, “You heard that? You weren’t even supposed to be home-”
Jungwon laughs, “I can’t believe you finally became a fan and I didn’t notice. I need to hang out with Jay less…”
“Wow, Wonie. You’re gonna ditch me just like that to talk to Sunoo about his newfound obsession?”
“It’s definitely not that-” He was caught singing along to his song only once, the only song he likes by the way. This doesn’t suddenly turn him into a fan.
“Don’t be like that, hyung,” Jungwon leans in and presses a kiss to Jay’s cheek to appease him, “You’re still my number one. But first I need to change my lock screen again to his new photo-”
“Change it to me-” Jay grabs him and attacks him with more kisses to distract his boyfriend from the fact that he’s trying to steal his phone away.
They’re so cute Sunoo wants to kill himself, but that’s dramatic so he excuses himself from their table conveniently at the same time the buzzer for their food goes off. “I’m gonna get our food—When I get back you two better be done sucking face.” Jay shows him his middle finger in which Sunoo ignores as he hops out of the booth.
As he waits in the pick up line, Sunghoon sends another message:
[BESTIE]:
200k likes in only 5 mins,,,, nice
I see ur roomie’s fan account in my comments
He’s so cute
Yeah he is
And he’s obsessed 😒😒😒
You’re his lock screen now
[BESTIE]:
I’m so flattered 😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍
Also are you busy later? do u think we can call tonight
I wanna show u something
Ever since Sunoo gave him his number, the idol has been texting him whenever he can despite his hectic schedule. Sunghoon had been on tour since the last time Sunoo saw him in person, performing shows in locations spanning Korea and America.
And true to his word, Sunghoon kept up with his communication despite the time zone difference, never failing to ask Sunoo for his opinions about things, asking how his day was, or showing him pictures and talking about his time on tour. He’s very dedicated, which Sunoo honestly didn't expect, but finds endearing nonetheless.
Now Sunghoon’s asking for them to video call later on which is rare considering how strict he can be sometimes with his privacy, which he made clear to Sunoo earlier on when they first started communicating via phone. If Sunghoon’s asking to call it must be something really important.
So he says yes to the idol’s request, at least now he has something eventful planned for the evening.
“It’s been a while since I’ve seen you,” Sunghoon starts out the call after greeting him, “I was starting to forget your face.”
“Can’t say the same for you,” Sunoo sees his face online basically every day, “All over social media there you are—I can never escape you.”
“Why would you want to? My face is a blessing to all around the world.”
“Yeah, okay,” He rolls his eyes, “So, why did you want to call tonight?”
“Would you believe me if I said that I just simply missed you?” Sunghoon laughs softly, “Not to be a sap or anything but it felt so suffocating to be surrounded by management all the time these past few months—Everyone’s always so serious, I couldn’t even joke around properly and my dad—my manager would scold me for being ‘rude’, so he says.”
“That seriously sucks,” Sunoo sympathizes, “I’m sorry… you must’ve felt really lonely.”
“I was, but at least I had my songwriting journal and daily phone calls with Jaeyun to keep me sane.” Jaeyun’s the son of CEO of Sunghoon’s label, as he’s been told, who also works on some of the production of his songs. From what Sunoo’s gathered from their talks, Sunghoon trusts him a lot. “Aren’t you gonna tell me how much you missed me, too?”
“Who said I missed you?”
“There’s no need to play coy, Sunoo,” He drags out the length of his name, “You’re the only one who goes out of their way to insult me randomly over text at 3 am.”
“And that somehow shows you that I care about you? You’re more narcissistic than I thought.”
“It more so shows how much you wanted a reaction out of me, meaning you totally miss me.”
He’s so stubborn, “Fine, fine. I missed you, is that what you wanted to hear?”
“Very much so, I’ll treasure it forever.”
“Gross,” He says, but smiles. Sunoo’s still riding the high of Sunghoon telling him he missed him first, he likes having that effect on people. “Anyways—Tell me the real reason why you called me.”
“I wanted to show you something I’ve been working on these past few weeks.” He goes out of frame, to the side, coming back on screen with a guitar in his lap. “I haven’t even shown my label this yet, you'll be the first to hear it.”
“Wow, I must be so special.” He fakes his sarcasm.
“You are.” After positioning it and tuning it up, Sunghoon starts playing a sequence of light yet melancholic chords on the instrument.
And unexpectedly, he starts singing. “Beautiful…” The words slip out, when Sunghoon finishes, “I mean, the song sounds pretty so far.” And so does your voice.
“Thanks.” The idol strikes another chord for good measure, “Is it pretty like a pretty boy?”
“That was corny.” Sunoo deadpans, “But if the final version does sound anything like ‘Pretty Boy’, best believe I will be streaming.”
“You really like that song, don’t you?”
“Of course I do, it’s literally your best song.”
“Makes sense, the song was inspired by you, after all. I’m glad you like it so much.”
Sunoo briefly wonders what specific parts of the song was inspired by him. Not wanting to ask, he switches the topic, “So what’s this new ‘Untitled’ project inspired by?”
“I don’t even think I know myself. I just started writing anything that came to mind.” He shrugs, “This might seem odd to ask but are you doing anything Thursday night?”
“Probably just studying again for finals… so a very boring night. Why do you ask?”
“I’m in a hotel in Seoul right now for a little bit for some schedules before I fly out to Japan that Friday—I wanted to meet with you before I leave since it’s been so long. I was planning on inviting Jaeyun over as well, and you two could meet.” Sunghoon explains, sounding hopeful. “But you’re busy so-”
“What, no—I’m not busy.”
“But you just said you had to study…”
“I could always study on Friday,” His friends will be fine if he skips one day of studying together, “I’ll be there.”
“…Wow,” Sunghoon just sits there, smirking yet again, “And you didn’t want to admit that you missed me.”
“Shut up—And send me the address. Please.”
☀️☀️☀️
Meeting up with a guy at a fancy hotel at night does sound sketchy out of context.
For example, when Sunoo told Jungwon that he was gonna be out for the night and to study without him, his roommates first immediate thought was that Sunoo was ditching him to go meet up with Riki and hook up with him or something. And he doesn’t really blame Jungwon for jumping to that conclusion, as he didn’t really explain who he was meeting and why he was going there.
Oh well, he’ll deal with the rapid fire of questions when he comes back later. Right now he’s too busy focusing on wondering if he’s at the right address or not.
The address of the hotel Sunghoon was staying in on the other side of the city was definitely for people above his tax bracket, Sunoo felt so out of place as soon as he stepped into the lobby.
He quickly goes for the elevator, trying not to draw too much attention to himself as he inputs the floor Sunghoon told him to go to and find his room.
Sunoo knocks three times once he finds the door and is met with an unfamiliar face when it opens. Thinking he somehow messed up and knocked on the wrong door he panics, until the stranger introduces himself. “Sunoo, right? We’ve been expecting you.”
Relieved that he did indeed not make a fool of himself, he steps inside the room’s threshold, “Hoon was right,” The guy looks him up and down after closing the door behind him, “You do look like a model.”
Sunoo flushes at the compliment, muttering a quick thank you, “I am. You must be Jaeyun,” He greets, “It’s so nice to meet you, I’ve heard so much about you.”
“Likewise. And please, call me Jake,” Jaeyun—Jake, smiles, “By the way, Sunghoon’ll be out in a second, he went into the bathroom real quick. Said something about fixing his hair?”
Sunoo nods, then looks around the room, finally taking in his surroundings. The inside of the room was just as grand as the lobby, very spacious and expensively furnished, and peeking through the curtains that lead to the balcony Sunoo can spot the edges of the glowing blue and steamy hot tub.
“Fancy, right?” Sunoo turns around at the sound of Jake’s voice, “It’s the honeymoon suite, Sunghoon figured he should treat himself after completing the second leg of his tour.”
“Is it just him here?”
“In this room? Yeah, but his manager is like next door in a different room. In here though,” He goes and bends down near one of the beds, picking out and showing him a bottle of alcohol, “It’s just us three.”
Free drinks plus a hangout in a fancy hotel room? Sounds like Sunoo’s ideal kind of night, “That brand is nice, you guys have great taste.”
“Only the best, amirite?”
“I’m back-” Sunghoon interrupts, “Sunoo, hi,” Coming out of the bathroom, the idol appears and comes straight towards him, unexpectedly engulfing him in a hug, “It’s been so long since I saw you.”
Face buried in his neck because of their slight height difference, Sunoo’s voice muffles, “You saw me earlier this week on a video call.”
“I meant in person,” Sunghoon releases him, finally letting him breathe, “I see you’ve properly met Jaeyun. Or Jake. Same thing, honestly.”
“You’re the only one who calls me Jaeyun, dipshit-” Jake playfully moves to jump on his back, punching him in his shoulders in his best effort to have Sunghoon fall to the ground despite his small stature.
“It’s meant to be endearing, since you’re so tiny-”
“I’m older than you!”
“By less than a month-” Sunghoon manages to break free of his grasp and throw him off his back. He quickly touches up his hair, fixing it back to the way it was neatly styled before Jake ruined it, turning to Sunoo, “Sorry you had to witness that—He gets cranky.”
“It’s fine, it was entertaining to watch. I can tell you guys are good friends.” Sunghoon and Jake’s dynamic reminds him a lot of his and Jay’s. For seven years and counting, it has brought Sunoo great satisfaction knowing that as long as he’s around Jay will never know peace. “So, what’s on the agenda tonight? I skipped studying just for this.”
“Well, Sunoo, I hope you brought your swimming trunks.”
He did bring them since Sunghoon told him to, figuring there was a pool or something in the hotel to swim in. Sunoo can’t swim, so he brought a simple pair of trunks and plain T-shirt to wear with it while he sits on the edge and dips his toes in the water.
They all change, and now the three of them are sitting in the hot tub, all facing each other, Sunoo being the only one in a shirt.
Despite the close proximity it’s not at all awkward as Sunoo expected it to be. The atmosphere is comfortable, or maybe it’s just the steam of the hot tub tricking him, but he feels relaxed as he chats with Jake and Sunghoon.
He learns that Jake has lived in Australia and has many writing credits under his belt at his young age, which is how Sunghoon came to befriend him since his dad is the CEO of the label.
“By the way, Sunoo, how old are you?” Jake asks.
“21.”
“Ah, that makes me your hyung. So cute.”
“I guess it does… Jake hyung.”
“Hey, Sunoo,” Sunghoon emphasizes, “You never call me hyung.”
“Right, I always forget that you’re a year ahead of me,” Only about seven months apart, to be specific, “Probably because of the difference in our maturity levels.”
“And what’s that supposed to mean?”
To an outsider, it’s probably a sorry sight to witness two grown men in their swim trunks bickering with each other in a hot tub. Actually, Sunoo’s pretty sure that’s how Jake feels hearing them. “So it’s not just me that he loves to piss off purposely,” Jake says after they’ve calmed down, “Good to know that he doesn’t secretly hate me.”
“Gosh, tell me about it. Does he do that annoying baby talk to you as well?”
“Oh, I see how it is.” Sunghoon literally pouts, seeing them bond over their mutual love of making fun of him, “It was a mistake to introduce you two.”
Sunoo begs to differ, “It was your best idea yet.”
“I agree. Plus, I wanted to see for myself to know the person who’s responsible for Sunghoonie’s sneaky late night calls.” Jake wiggles his eyebrows suggestively.
“I wouldn’t call it sneaky…”
“And,” Jake focused on Sunoo now, “I also hear that you’re the inspiration behind his hit, ‘Pretty Boy’.”
“Yeah…” He replies sheepishly, “He really wanted to get me into his music so he asked what kind of songs I liked, I told him, and then he actually delivered. ‘Pretty Boy’ is my favorite song out right now.”
“Your favorite song ever right now?” Sunghoon’s mood lifts, smirking, “That part you didn’t tell me.”
“Blah blah, now you know. Is your ego stroked yet?”
“It could use some more stroking.”
“He delivered indeed, I’m proud of him,” Jake crosses his arms, looking Sunghoon’s way with fondness in his eyes. “Fun fact: He locked himself in the recording booth for like 48 hours because he wanted the song to be absolutely perfect for-”
“Jaeyun,” Sunghoon warns, a hint of sharpness in his glare.
“Right. Well, my fingers are getting pruney so I’m gonna go ahead and shower,” Jake pays him no mind simply excuses himself, standing. “You two have fun.” As Jake exits the hot tub he leaves behind a trail of water as he pads back inside.
Now it just leaves him and Sunghoon left in the hot tub, causing Sunoo to tense a bit. With just them now the setting becomes more… intimate. It makes him anxious. Kinda.
Distracting himself from his inner thoughts is all he can do now without seeming suspicious, “…Is he okay?”
“He’s fine, don’t worry about it,” Sunghoon clarifies, sighing. Jake left too abruptly for Sunoo’s liking, he hopes nothing is wrong between the two friends. “Also I apologize if any of his questions made you uncomfortable-”
“Nah, it’s okay—His questions didn’t bother me at all.”
“Are you sure?”
He nods, “Yeah, and I get it. I can tell he cares a lot and he’s just looking out for you. I am just a stranger that came out of nowhere, after all.”
“You’re not a stranger,” Sunghoon looks him in the eyes, “I may have only known you for a couple of months yet you somehow know me better than people who’ve been there since the start of my career, back when I was just a nobody. To me, that makes you more important than most people.”
In a strange way, Sunoo feels the same, “I tell you stuff I haven’t even told people… not even Jay.” He cringes back at the thoughts he has of his ranting to Sunghoon about the most random of things, who’s so enthusiastic to know what’s going on his life and even agreeing with Sunoo even if he’s in the wrong in some situations, “Isn’t that insane?”
“I couldn’t tell you.” For a moment it goes quiet between them, only thing you could hear was the bustling city down below and the bubbles in the tub. Sunghoon plays in the water, concentrating on making circles with his hands, and his fingertips are raisin, much like Sunoo’s.
Sunoo makes the mistake of allowing his eyes to travel from his fingers, up to his body. His bare torso, free of any marks but just wet with water droplets. Now that he's really looking at Sunghoon’s body, Sunoo observes that the idol has a really nice build. The perfect, athlete slender build, not to mention that the idol has a bit of muscle on him.
Sunoo gulps and looks away, realizing how weird he’s being for blatantly oogling Sunghoon’s body with barely any shame.
This is why he can’t be left alone with an attractive man with no shirt on in a hot tub of all places, finding himself cursing Jake in his head for leaving them alone.
Sunghoon starts talking again, thankfully saving him from his inappropriate thoughts. “I didn’t tell you before but I got a lot of backlash from management when I showed them the demo to ‘Pretty Boy’. They kept asking me why I would make something so different than my usual.”
“Are they stupid…? That song was amazing.”
“Honestly, only your opinion mattered to me but yeah, I also thought they were dumb for that.” He looks down and scoffs, “Eventually they let me go ahead with it and you know how the rest worked out—But then my dad pulled me aside and questioned me about what the reason for the song was.”
“Did you tell him you wrote it just so you could impress a boy?” Sunoo jokes.
“If I did that would’ve caused bigger problems on its own,” The idol laughs, “I just told him that I wanted to try something new, see how the fan response was. It turned out better than I expected.”
“I bet its success really shut the management up.”
“It did, and I’m glad. Because not only did the fans like it, it made me proud of myself for branching out to new genres,” He then smiles, and Sunoo’s heart does a thing, “It makes the song special to me. To you. Special to us.”
Sunoo hums in acknowledgement, “It’s special indeed but I’m still curious of what… or who the song was about. It’s all everyone talks about online.” Despite his fame Sunghoon had long since claimed the role as the most mysterious celebrity ever since his debut. From what Sunoo’s heard he’s vague in press conferences when asked about the meanings of his songs and instead encourages the public to interpret his music however they want.
It makes the social media presence fun, according to Jungwon, who makes theories online on his stan account. With the recent success of ‘Pretty Boy’ everyone online tried to understand its meaning, wondering why Sunghoon decided to switch up the formula and what they’re supposed to take away from the song as a whole.
It’s the greatest mystery right now in the Sunghoon fandom, everyone in it as well as the media are trying to figure out what goes on in the famed idol’s brain.
“It’s about… someone specific, I’ll admit. But there’s no words I can put the feeling to just yet. I don’t know… I don’t think I’ll ever know, to be honest.”
It’s a bit of a cop out answer, but Sunoo doesn’t mind. Sunghoon has made it clear to him from before that music is important to him, making it personal. He understands if Sunghoon isn’t ready to disclose his reasoning just yet, or ever.
But there is something Sunoo’s a little bit more curious about, he wonders if Sunghoon’s even comfortable enough to tell him. “You titled the song ‘Pretty Boy’…”
“I did.”
“And the lyrics talk about someone who's… yearning for a pretty boy but they can’t because of circumstances ‘cause of the moon or whatever metaphor you used… So um. Uh, are you…?”
“Are you asking me if I’m straight?” Sunghoon finishes for him, and at first Sunoo thought he offended him but realizes that Sunghoon’s laughing, “It’s okay to be curious, the topic of my sexuality has been widely discussed online, I’ve seen it all. I’m used to it.”
Sunoo has seen it too but it’s never been confirmed. All of Sunghoon’s songs are kinda vague, no one knows who he’s really talking about in them. No one seems to really care though, they’re mostly just here for good music and his handsome face. “…Sorry.”
“Don’t be,” He waves him off, “If you really wanna know, the short answer is no.”
Even now he’s being vague, and Sunoo knows better than to ask him to elaborate.
“Fuck, I’m making this way awkward then it needs to be. Sorry,” Sunghoon apologizes for some reason, and hurriedly throws some water in his face to cool him down. “Jaeyun showers fast so he should be out now so we can have our turn to rinse off the chlorine—Unless you want to stay in here for a while longer?”
“No, it’s fine,” Sunoo slowly eases himself up, “It’s best if we get out now anyway—Any longer and I fear I’ll pass out from the heat.”
They take turns washing the chlorine out in the bathroom, and once Sunoo’s out of it and changed back into original clothes he meets Sunghoon and Jake by the beds.
The rest of the evening didn’t feel so suffocating as the hot tub, Sunoo feeling freer in the spacious room and comfortable bedding as he eats the meal provided by room service that Sunghoon ordered for them.
He’s also about two shots in, maybe that had something to do with it.
He watches Sunghoon pour and down another shot, “Now that we’re actually out of the hot tub it makes me wish that this hotel had an actual pool. I haven’t swam in forever.”
Jake, also tipsy, snatches the bottle away. “Go in the bathroom, plug up the drain and fill the tub with water. Boom, a pool.”
“It’s not the same—I’m big as hell for that tiny tub anyway.”
“I didn’t get the chance to ask before but why are you in a hotel anyway?” Sunoo asks, “You said something about schedules? Why not stay in your house?”
“I don’t live in Seoul, my actual house is somewhere else a little more suburban. That’s where my mom stays while my dad and I travel due to work,” Sunghoon explains, “But yeah, while I’m in between my tour shows I was booked last minute for another modeling shoot so that’s why I’m here before I leave for the third leg of my tour.”
“It’s a skincare brand this time, yeah?” Jake inquires.
“Yup. Don’t understand why we had to squeeze this in instead of me resting before I go to Japan but oh well.”
“See, if I knew that you were on that much of a time crunch with barely any time to sleep I would've stayed home to study so you could rest.” Sunoo feels sorry for him, personally couldn’t imagine living a life where he doesn’t have the opportunity to have his twelve hour naps.
“Yes, but having fun is way better than catching some Z’s,” He slurs his words, “Plus drinking is way better with friends than alone. Doing it alone just makes it depressing.”
“Careful, Hoon. Remember that you’re a lightweight,” He nods over to Sunoo, “Even one shot alone is enough to take him out.”
“Don’t feed him lies,” The idol retorts, “Jeez, you’re just hellbent on embarrassing me tonight, aren’t you?”
“I don’t know, it doesn’t look like you’re beating those lightweight allegations,” Sunoo points out as Sunghoon gets up to go to the trash. “Look at you—you’re stumbling.”
“Not stumbling. I simply just tripped.”
“Over absolutely nothing,” Sunoo laughs. He abandons his place on the bed to go help him back to the bed before he ends up falling face first.
“You’re so warm.” Sunghoon snuggles against his arm, clearly a bit out of it, “Like the Sun. Like a Sunoo. Cus that’s you,” He giggles.
Jake checks the bottle’s alcohol percent, “30%. Yeah, he’s done for the night.”
Sunoo carefully brings him to the bed and gives him water, then tucks him in like a baby. It’s nearing midnight, it’s unfortunate that their hangout tonight went by so quickly.
When he turns to leave Sunghoon tugs him back by his hand, “You’re leaving already?”
“Mhm. It’s late,” He gently takes his hand back, “But I had fun today, thank you for inviting me.”
“It’s very late, so why go home at this hour? You should stay here and leave in the morning.” Sunghoon mumbles with his eyes closed, “I don’t want you to get kidnapped.”
Sunoo ironically finds his ridiculousness a bit endearing. “I won’t get kidnapped.”
“Please? At least stay until I sleep—It’ll take like five minutes I promise.”
“I can take care of him if you’re gonna go, Sunoo,” Jake offers, but Sunoo tells him it’s alright. Sunghoon’s on the brink of sleep anyway, so he supposes he could stay a little while longer.
Jake turns the lights off and leaves on only the lamp on the bedside table between the two beds, then settles himself into bed.
Sunoo gets into Sunghoon’s bed, leaving a comfortable amount of space between them. He lies there, simply staring at the ceiling while he waits for the man beside him to fall asleep.
☀️☀️☀️
Five minutes have turned into two hours, which Sunoo realizes when he jumps awake and immediately checks the time on his almost dead phone.
Sunghoon’s side of the bed was empty, and judging by the turned on light in the bathroom he deduces that’s where he is.
The light comes off and out comes Sunghoon, rubbing at his eyes. He stops once he realizes Sunoo’s awake, “Sorry, did I wake you up?”
“I feel like you’ve said ‘sorry’ like eight times tonight.”
Sunghoon crawls back into bed, “I’m just gonna assume the answer is yes.”
“Did you throw up?”
“No, I didn’t. I’m not that much of a lightweight.”
“So you remembered that.”
“I also, unfortunately, remember me begging you to stay,” He says, ashamed, “Again, sorry about that.”
“Sunghoon, it’s fine. Don’t worry, it’s not like I was rushing to go home anyway. Jungwon is fine there without me, I’m home alone all the time when he's gone.”
Right on cue, Sunoo’s phone lights up with a message from Jungwon asking where he is. Sunghoon teases him about it, “Are you sure about that?” Another text comes in, this time from Jay, telling him to respond to Jungwon while also asking where he is. “It’s cute that they care about you. I mean, as they should but, you get what I mean. Jaeyun’s the same way with me when he finds me locked in the studio recording.”
“I swear, they act like they’re my parents.” He gets more messages but his phone dies before he’s able to respond to either of them.
“Did you tell them where you were going?”
“Not the full details in order to protect your identity, obviously,” Jungwon was upset that he canceled their study sesh together but quickly got over it, “I just told my roommate I was going to hangout with a friend, he probably thinks I’m with Riki or something.”
Sunghoon lays back down on his side, propping his head up and rests his head in his palm, “Who’s Riki?”
“Oh… just my coworker, and I guess the guy I’m talking to. I think.”
“You think?”
“It’s complicated,” Sunoo lies down too and mimics his position, “Like, we’ve gone on dates and stuff but we never actually confirm it to be a date so it’s really just a regular friend hangout—but it’s weird because something is there but neither of us acknowledge it.”
“So you two like each other?”
“Well, he likes me and I…” His voice trails, then shrugs. “I don’t know how I feel.”
Whenever the topic of Riki comes up Jungwon can’t help but question Sunoo why they aren’t dating yet. “You two went on how many dates yet you’re still not boyfriends? If I were you I’d hop on that as quick as light.”
“What if I don’t want to be boyfriends?”
“You don’t? But you were just crying about your lack of a boyfriend like, last week?”
“I wasn’t crying—I’m just not into him like that.”
“Is that the only reason?” Jungwon’s question had Sunoo thinking. Is that really the only reason?
“Actually… I do know how I feel.” He tells Sunghoon, “…I think I’m not quite ready to move on from my ex boyfriend.”
He can’t tell Jungwon this because then he’ll tell Jay, Jay will confront him about it and then it will turn into one big mess—Sunoo’s not in the mood to deal with that.
“Your ex?” Sunghoon repeats, “He must be a good person if you’re still thinking about him.”
“He is. Was.”
“Was…? Did he-”
“No, not that. Sorry, I worded it wrong. He’s in a band that he practically devotes his life to. He didn’t have time for me, and when it came down to him wanting to travel the world to tour I begged him to stay,” Sunoo takes breaths in between, “I asked him to choose between his band or me—My fucking mistake—And he broke up with me before he left. It’s been a year and a half.”
Sunoo figured Sunghoon would ask more questions, but least of all he asks, “What’s his name?”
“It’s Heeseung.”
Sunghoon shifts to lay on his back, his hands folded over his chest. “Hm. I hate him.”
Sunoo snorts, “You don’t even know him.”
“He hurt you, so I hate him,” He states so confidently. “He’s gotta be some type of insane to dump someone who looks like you.”
Sunoo likes to think he’s gotten over Heeseung, mostly. The breakup hurted greatly back then, but at least now he can joke about it. “Not to turn into you but yeah, I am pretty hot. But looks aren’t always enough to keep someone around. He had goals for himself and I wasn’t a part of it. It sucks.”
“I get what you mean.”
“Really?” Sunoo narrows his eyes, looking curiously, “Have any stories to tell? Spill.”
Sunghoon takes a deep breath before he begins, “Before I got famous famous I was in a… situationship, I guess. Basically I liked the person way more than they liked me, and I remember they didn’t respond to my texts for like three days but I would just keep texting them thinking their phone was dead or something.”
“For three days? You really believed that?”
“Hey, I was young and dumb.”
“How young?”
“Uh, like nineteen. But that’s not the point—Point is their phone wasn’t dead like I stupidly believed and I was in fact just being ignored. I caught them making fun of me in front of their friends like a week after that, showing them screenshots of me basically just talking to myself in our messages, literally just me professing my ‘love’ for them.” He reminisces, bitterly, “I lost my virginity to them too… fucking asshole.”
“That’s actually way sadder than I thought it would be, holy shit—Are you okay? Personally I think I would’ve killed myself...”
“At the time I really thought my world was ending,” He laughs to ease the mood, “But then I wrote a sick ass song about my issues and it blew up. Now I have so many people online begging for me to look their way because of how hot I am—Talk about the biggest of ‘fuck you’s’.”
“Seriously. Do you know where they are now?”
“No clue, but I hope their life is miserable-” They laugh, both of them being able to bond over their shitty past experiences. “Wow. That conversation really sobered me up.”
“You’re telling me you weren’t sober this whole time?”
“Lightweight,” Sunghoon yawns, covering his mouth, “But now I’m actually feeling tired again.”
“Same,” Sunoo mimics, “I have nothing special going on but you have a whole flight to catch.”
“Mhm.” Sunghoon stares, “…Thank you for staying, by the way. You didn’t have to.”
“I didn’t, but I wanted to. Besides, seeing a drunk Sunghoon was totally worth it. You were adorable.”
“I can’t deny that…” The tips of his ears turn pink, “I wonder what a drunk Sunoo would look like, I bet you’d be even more adorable than I am.”
“More or else. Unlike you I actually have a high tolerance.” He gloats.
“I’ll be the judge of that… someday.” He says with his eyes closed and soon dozed off to sleep. Sunoo once again finds himself staring too long at the idol next to him, but this time at his sleeping figure. Somehow, Sunghoon looks even more handsome like this, looking so gentle, Sunoo resists the urge to boop his nose.
“I’m so fucking creepy…” He whispers to himself as he turns away from him, scooting closer to his edge of the bed with his back turned to Sunghoon, wanting to sleep as far away as possible.
☀️☀️☀️
One of the things Sunoo cherishes the most are compliments.
“You’re the prettiest face I’ve ever laid my eyes upon.”
Whether it’s on his looks, how well he’s dressed, or even for his singing voice back when he was onstage in his high school performances, just one compliment is all it takes for his face to blush red and whisper a thank you.
“You smell so good, too.”
Life is all about fun and being appreciated, why wouldn’t he bask in the feeling of being loved for who he is? Most people's happiness derive from how they’re perceived by others, Sunoo’s just taking advantage.
“I wish I could keep you with me forever.”
But most of all, the feeling of knowing that the compliments are genuine is what really gets to him.
“You’re the only one who understands me.”
Sunoo’s eyes are screwed shut, channeling all of his focus on the feeling of his body being touched, being kissed, and appreciated.
“Sunghoon…”
The giver, Park Sunghoon, comes out from underneath the bed covers. A dopey smile graces his face, because when doesn’t it, as he moves to hover over Sunoo’s body. “Yeah?”
Sunoo slowly lifts his hand only to place it on top of Sunghoon’s hair, trying to smooth it down in place. He knows far too well how neat Sunghoon prefers his hair to look, “Kiss me.”
Sunoo jumps from his sleep, panting in shock of his dream.
Looking around he realizes he’s back in his dorm room, then remembers how early he actually had woken this morning to leave Sunghoon’s hotel room since the idol had a flight to catch and Jake offered him a ride home back to campus.
He remembered coming home to a passed out Jungwon on the couch at 7 am with textbooks scattered about his sleeping figure before he dashed to his own room and fell into bed, desperate to catch up on sleep.
But then he woke up in a cold sweat from his stupid dream, a nightmare actually. Why did Sunoo have to dream of that of all things? Is he really that desperate?
“Holy shit—I’m going insane…”
Immediately Sunoo runs to the bathroom to take a quick, cold shower, rubbing soap harshly on his body as if it would wash away his impure thoughts. As soon as he exits the bathroom he makes it his number one priority to not think about anything from last night or about his dream. Hell, it’s probably better to not think at all.
When done he goes out to the living room and pauses when he sees Jay in the kitchen helping himself to a bowl of cereal. “What are you doing here?”
“Good morning to you too,” Jay answers instead, nonchalantly eating another spoonful of his breakfast, “And I’m just chilling.”
“But why here? Your apartment is way better,” At least Jay’s apartment doesn't have mold growing in the walls, “Jungwon’s in his room, right? I was gonna ask if he wanted to go get breakfast with me.”
“I just got back after dropping him off at his internship thing, actually.” Jay explains, “But if you’re hungry I can make you an omelet or something, there’s still a few eggs in the fridge.”
Without Jay, Sunoo probably wouldn’t have survived this long in an apartment without his parents, “Have I ever told you how much I love you?”
“Only when you want something,” He jokes, setting aside his bowl of cereal for now.
As Jay cracks the eggs in a pan and chops up some peppers Sunoo leans against the kitchen counter half watching him and half scrolling through his phone. It’s a calm Friday morning so far until the BS he’ll have to go through at work later, so he’s grateful for it.
That is, until Jay brings up last night. “So… are you up for talking about how your night went?”
“What about it…” He replies in a bored tone, hoping Jay would get the hint.
He doesn’t, “I don’t know, you tell me. Did you and Riki finally bone?”
“Uh, gross—I am not talking about this with you, you’re like my father.”
“We’re basically the same age-” Jay defends, “It’s not like I’m asking for specific details, it’s just a yes or no question.”
“Why, so you can tell Jungwon?”
Jay sighs, turning up the stove heat, “I won’t tell him if you really don’t want me to. Though, I really don’t get why you’re being so secretive about this Riki thing, you know we’d be happy for you.”
“Okay… for your information, I didn’t hang out with Riki last night so unfortunately, I’m still involuntarily celibate.”
“Then… who? Is it a new guy?”
“…I guess. He’s who I’ve been texting a lot recently. He travels for work and he happened to be in town for the week and he invited me over to his hotel room,” He’s omitting a few details but it’s still technically the truth, “I didn’t plan to stay the whole night but I did.”
“You’re telling me you went to a guy’s hotel room, stayed the whole night, and didn’t have sex with him?”
“Because we’re just friends,” He first makes clear, “And because I haven’t seen him in so long we just used the time to catch up. Plus his other friend was there, everything was completely platonic.”
“With the way you sound it sounds like you want more than that,” Jay focuses his attention back on the pan, “So do you?”
“Do I what?”
“Do you want to be more than friends with this guy?”
Despite not wanting to be reminded, he thinks back to how hot Sunghoon looked in the hot tub, how gorgeous he looked when he dozed to sleep, and his dream. Then there’s the flirtatious comments Sunghoon says that never fail to make him smile, and whether he was joking or not the compliments made Sunoo’s heart leap with joy every time.
If there’s one thing Sunoo can admit is the undeniable fact that Sunghoon’s attractive. Not even in just his face but his personality, how he always takes the time to reach out to Sunoo despite his busy schedules and how attentive he is when Sunoo speaks, looking so eager to know more about how his days go.
Is Sunoo comfortable around him? Yes. Does he feel like he could share anything about himself with Sunghoon? Also yes. In just a few months Sunghoon has quickly worked his way up on Sunoo’s list of people he trusts, but there’s just one issue.
Sunghoon’s famous. Their whole friendship is based around secrecy. It isn’t even ideal for Sunghoon to publicly be his friend, so the thought of Sunoo thinking of him as more than just a friend is just…
He can’t. It’s not like it’ll ever come to that anyway, no point in dwelling on it.
So he gives Jay an evasive answer, “…I don’t know.”
Jay doesn’t look like he buys it, but gives up asking further questions on that topic. He opens the cabinet and takes out the salt and pepper shakers, “Okay. Is he at least hot?”
“You should know better that I don’t date ugly guys.”
“Touché. Do you have a picture?”
“No pictures… he’s shy.”
“Well, whatever happens, I’m rooting for you two. He seems to make you happy.”
It’s kinda reassuring to hear, even though he knows whatever Jay thinks is happening here couldn’t be farther from the truth. “Thank you, Jay, for listening. And not prying much.”
“I’ve known you for way too long to not know your boundaries,” He turns off the stove and faces him with a plate ready in his hands, “So, ready to eat?”
☀️☀️☀️
[BESTIE]:
Is water wet
It’s 4 fucking am
[BESTIE]:
Is that a yes or
It means it 4 fucking am
Why are you awake
[BESTIE]:
I could ask u the same thing
I’m an insomniac what’s ur excuse
[BESTIE]:
Jet lag babyyyyy
Different time zones really fucks with ur sleep schedule
Now that I’m done with tour I need to get used to Korean hours again
And finish this damn album 😩😩
Pray for me sun
Prayers 🧎
^^ That’s me praying btw
[BESTIE]:
Knew I could count on you
Are you excited to see me again
Huh
Do you even have time for that
Didn’t you say you were gonna be busy with ur album thingy
[BESTIE]:
Aww don’t play dumb babe 💔💔 ur too hot for that
I feel like we’re having two separate convos here
[BESTIE]:
Wait do u seriously not know
Like actually ?
Not know what
Don’t play games rn Sunghoon it’s 4 am
Did we make plans and I just forgot
[BESTIE]:
This is so funny I’m crying
Actually I have a straight face rn but
I’m having so much fun
Are u insane wth are you going on about
[BESTIE]:
Don’t worry about it
Jungwon will probably tell you about it anyway 😁
My roommate???
U don’t even know him
[BESTIE]:
You’re right I don’t but I’m putting my faith in him anyway 🤞🏻
Gn
I hope u get plagued with nightmares
[BESTIE]:
God I love being degraded
🖕🏻🖕🏻🖕🏻
☀️☀️☀️
“Park Sunghoon’s coming to our university!” Jungwon hollers at the top of his lungs while jumping up and down for joy on the couch cushions.
Sitting on the other end of the couch wrapped in his cozy blanket, Sunoo’s still having a hard time processing what he just heard. “I’m sorry, what?”
“I believe he said Sunghoon’s coming to our university.” Jay repeats more loudly than necessary just to be an ass, “I can already imagine the people crowding campus to see the show… Saturday’s gonna be a shit show.”
That’s when it comes to Sunoo’s attention that their university is hosting some charity event and have invited multiple music artists to campus and perform to raise money. They do this every start of the semester, it must’ve slipped Sunoo’s mind. “Okay, cute event and all but why our college? Can our school even afford him?”
“I didn’t think we had the funds either but I won’t complain-” Jungwon goes back to frantically typing something on his phone, probably updating his stan account, “I’m gonna have to camp outside for four days to guarantee my front row spot.”
“Babe, I am not letting you do that,” Jay reigns him in, grabbing him by his waist and forcing him to sit beside him.
“Why, afraid that Park Sunghoon will spot me out in the crowd and swoop me off my feet?”
“There’s nothing to be afraid of, because that won’t happen.”
“If this was some sort of fanfiction, it totally could.”
With this newfound information and very important business to attend to, Sunoo quietly excuses himself to his room. He flops down on his bed and opens his phone to text Sunghoon:
You’re performing at my school???
[BESTIE]:
I see you’ve found out
I knew I could count on Jungwon
Ya he screamed at the top of his lungs at the news
I’ll never forgive u for that
[BESTIE]:
Don’t act like you’re not excited as well sunshine ;))
You’re getting blocked
[BESTIE]:
Love u too ;D
☀️☀️☀️
It pains Sunoo to admit that he had been counting down the days until he would see Sunghoon again in person, even if it’s just on stage and not in a closed setting like he’s used to.
Ever since that hangout at the hotel, that dream he had, plus Jay teasing him about that ‘man who keeps him busy on his phone all night long’, certain thoughts have been occupying his mind lately.
Sunoo has never once considered himself to be boy crazy, but entertaining in his head the idea of him and Sunghoon being a couple has him rethinking that.
Because now that Sunoo really thinks about it, dating Sunghoon wouldn’t be so bad if you just completely ignore that the latter is a super famous idol with fans that would probably kill you if they found out you were romantically involved with him. Sunghoon is literally his type of man: tall, dark-haired, and handsome coupled with emotional maturity. Sunghoon’s still annoying with his teasing but now Sunoo kinda finds that aspect of him charming now too, and he literally screamed in the middle of the night once he realized that fact which prompted Jungwon to knock on his door and check up on him.
He’s been craving the feeling of love for months now, yet this wasn’t exactly how he’d prefer it to go. Maybe Sunoo should’ve been more specific about his wants, because now he’s left to deal with his slight crush on someone who he knows he can’t really have.
Honestly, it’s all Jay’s fault for implanting that stupid, stupid idea in his brain.
And to be reminded of his stupid thoughts once again, his phone lights up with a call from the idol. It’s rare for Sunghoon to call him in the middle of the day, and answers confused, “Uh, hello?”
“You answered me like you’re scared.”
“Not scared, just surprised… You usually prefer to text.”
“Normally, yeah. Listen, are you home?”
“Just got back from work, yeah. Why do you ask?”
“Perfect. Can you open the door for me?”
“Sunghoon, what-” It’s embarrassing how quick Sunoo leapt from the comfort of his bed to check the front door, and his jaw drops when he opens the door and sees him, “Oh my god.”
Sunghoon smiles mainly with his eyes as his mouth is covered by his signature black mask, “Surprise.”
Mixed between the emotions of shock and confusion, Sunoo’s not sure how to react but his body acts faster than his mind: He tugs on Sunghoon’s arm and into the dorm so he’s not in the hallway anymore and pulls him in for a bone crushing hug.
Their height difference makes him go crazy, Sunoo’s face is positioned perfectly at the center of Sunghoon’s neck. He hugs tighter, “What are you doing here a day early? The concert isn’t until tomorrow.”
“…Is it bad to say that I wanted to see you?” Sunghoon says nervously, digging his chin into his shoulder, “I’d have no time tomorrow; Just perform then leave immediately after.”
“Aww, you missed me.”
“I think you missed me more, you practically jumped on me when you saw me at the door.”
“Shut up,” Unfortunately, Sunoo lets go of him just so the idol wouldn’t have any ammo to use against him such as ‘accusing’ him of missing him. That’s when he notices the bag of takeout in his hand, “What’s that?”
“Food,” Sunoo follows him to the kitchen where he places the bag on the counter, “I brought sushi for us to eat, I hope you haven’t eaten yet.”
Sunoo leads Sunghoon to his room where they ate the sushi on his bed because it’s more private there. Sunghoon said that he didn’t know what kinds of sushi he liked so he bought a little of everything for him and Sunoo to share, enough that it would last as leftovers for tomorrow.
The sentiment did absolutely nothing to cool down the delusions Sunoo already had about the man. Even after they’ve finished eating all they could for today they sat and talked, listening to Sunghoon talk about his experiences and passion he felt while on his tour had him charmed.
Then the conversation shifted to the idol giving him spoilers of his set for tomorrow, “While I perform I’m thinking of pulling someone random on stage, just to spice up the performance you know.” Sunghoon talks as he slurps the remainder of his soda, sitting on the edge of his bed.
Sunoo, head deep in his closet trying to figure out what he’s gonna wear to the event tomorrow, picks out a possible shirt and throws it on the bed. “Are you even allowed to do that?”
“Probably not, but management can’t stop me if I’m already in the middle of doing it,” He replies, smug, “And it’ll be awkward if they try to—Worst case scenario I’ll just get a scolding afterwards.”
Sunoo turns from his closet and to his bed, eyeing the two possible outfits he put together. “That reminds me… How were you able to convince management to let you on campus alone just to see me today?”
“I used the same excuse for when I first saw you in the 7/11, said I wanted some fresh air to find some ‘inspiration’ for new music.”
“Wow… you’re so sneaky.”
“Mhm,” He smirks, and Sunoo catches the way he looks him up and down. “You seem way too happy to hear that—Are you into bad boys, perhaps?”
“Not anymore I’m not,” He snorts, “Anyways—Help me pick an outfit for tomorrow.”
Sunghoon eyes his two choices, “Both look kinda fancy-ish. You have someone to impress or something?”
“Can’t I just look good for myself?”
“You look good without even having to try. But if you want my actual opinion, I like that outfit.”
“…You have good taste,” Sunoo turns away quickly to put back the clothes in his closet, not wanting Sunghoon to see his flushed face.
“Riki just texted you, by the way, asked what time he should pick you up,” He turns back to see Sunghoon sneaking a peek at his phone by the edge of the bed, “He’s going with you?”
“Yeah, he asked if he could tag along with us.”
“I see,” He hums, “Are you two a thing now?”
“No. We’re still just friends.”
“Do you still only see him as a friend?”
“…Yeah,” Sunoo sighs, “I swear, these last few months I tried to think of him as potential boyfriend material but… I still see him more as a friend.” Sunoo thinks Riki probably realized this too, he’s still a flirt but he at least hasn’t tried to progress their relationship further.
“Well. It can’t be helped, it’s better not to force it.” The idol whistles, “Some other guy’s gonna come along soon and sweep you off your feet anyway.”
Sunoo picks up his phone to text him back, “Wish it could come sooner.” He supposes life would be easier if he had more than just platonic feelings for Riki. Maybe then he wouldn’t have his friends teasing him for being single, Jay specifically wouldn’t tease him for being on his phone all the time when he’s talking to Sunghoon, or that he wouldn’t feel as lonely as he does now.
Probably sensing the tiny shift in his demeanor, because he always does, Sunghoon’s hand ghosts his lower back, “Are you okay?”
“Mhm, I’m just a little tired,” Which is not entirely a lie, he had worked all morning and just being in the store was draining. Sunghoon then fully hugs his hands around his waist, bringing him into his lap while Sunoo finishes messaging Riki back.
Sunoo freezes in place, not really sure what’s going on. “You’re oddly clingy today…”
“My bad, is this too much? Sorry—It’s just that I remember you saying you liked hugs once in our texts and you seemed upset so I-”
“It’s alright, Sunghoon. I don’t mind,” He chuckles at how adorable the idol looks in his razzled state, “I was just simply taken off guard.”
“Are you sure…? Because if you’re uncomfortable with me now I totally understand-”
“Hey,” Sunoo places a hand at the back of his hood, “If I were uncomfortable I promise you I would’ve slapped you.”
Relieved by his answer Sunghoon calms down, “You know most people would consider being slapped to be threatening and violent but I actually consider it to be a reward.”
He recovered very fast for him to revert back to his dumb, but charming jokes. “Sometimes I wonder how you’re still allowed to speak with the stuff that comes out of your mouth.”
“At least I’m able to joke around with you, on tour I was stuck around all these old people with a stick up their asses so I literally could not be myself,” Sunghoon expresses, resting his chin on Sunoo’s shoulder. “Plus Jaeyun is busy out of the country doing something work related, couldn’t bother him as much.”
“Jake’s out of the country? Where is he?”
“In America doing some kind of business venture.”
“Well in that case, I definitely don’t mind you being clingy if that's what you had to endure.” Sunoo tells him, and honestly it’s for himself too.
He and Sunghoon will never be real, but at least he can pretend.
“For real? Well then-” Sunghoon collapses his back on the bed and brings Sunoo down with him, tickling the life out of him. One thing to note about him is that he’s sensitive, which is probably the worst thing for Sunghoon to discover because now he takes advantage.
“Sunghoon—Tickling me isn’t necessary-” He laughs, thrashing around in the sheets as Sunghoon won’t let up, smiling evilly at how Sunoo is powerless against him. “Stop, hyung-” He says but doesn’t really mean, but Sunghoon stops anyway. Sunoo pants as he calms himself, lightly taking Sunghoon’s hand and putting it back, “Why’d you stop?”
Sunoo turns his head to the side, watching the idol relax and lie down next to him. “You finally called me hyung…”
“Relax, don’t get a boner over it,” He jokes, trying keep his grasp on the last bit of sanity he has left. Sunghoon’s so close, “Haven’t had anyone call you hyung before?”
“Barely. I’m surrounded by old people most of the time, remember? Besides… I like the way you say it.” Sunghoon, embarrassed, gets even closer to his body and hides his face in Sunoo’s neck. “God, I’m so lame.”
On impulse Sunoo lifts a hand to the back of Sunghoon’s head, keeping him in place. “It’s adorable to see you so shy. Imagine if all your fans knew how much of a big baby you are.”
“I think they’d be into it—The soft boy aesthetic is totally in right now.”
With an idea suddenly coming to mind, Sunoo acts on it. He opens his phone’s camera roll trying to discreetly snap a photo of Sunghoon acting childish but gets caught when the flash goes off. It was a rookie mistake, and it causes Sunghoon to flinch, but not because of the flash.
That’s when Sunoo realizes, “Oh, sorry—I forgot you hated pictures.”
“…It’s fine,” He hides his face further in his neck, leaving Sunoo to only see his hood in the frame. “Just not the face.”
After being granted the okay, Sunoo snaps more photos then eventually a video all while trying to ignore how Sunghoon’s face in his neck makes him ticklish. As he poses, Sunghoon slowly comes out of his shell, barely glancing at the camera and slightly lifting his head, planting a kiss on Sunoo’s cheek.
Now it’s Sunoo’s turn to be taken off guard, the evidence being shown in the camera as his eyes grow wide.
The touch of Sunghoon’s lips still linger on his face, leaving behind a tingling sensation that Sunoo doesn’t quite know how to describe. What he can figure out is that he didn’t mind it, as he doesn’t mind the other stuff Sunghoon does.
Maybe it’s the fact that Sunoo hasn’t been kissed nor received this much affection in a year and a half is part of the reason why he’s acting like this. Even so, he’s just as touch starved as the next, it really has been so long.
And he’s just a boy at the end of the day, can you really blame him?
With the hand still caressing the top of Sunghoon’s hood, Sunoo gently pushes his head closer, wanting the latter to be so near that they become one.
Sunghoon takes the hint and laughs softly in the crevice of his neck, leaning up to press more kisses to his face, which Sunoo films carefully so as to not have the idol's face shown.
Then Sunghoon kisses lower, trailing the angle of his jaw. Sensitive to his touch Sunoo’s phone slips from his hands and drops to his stomach. Courageously, Sunghoon cups his jaw and twists his head to the side to gain more access, and starts kissing down his neck.
If you had asked Sunoo how he’d have spent his Friday afternoon the answer would’ve been simple: Take a fat nap after working all morning, wake up late in the evening and order something to eat if Jay hadn’t cooked, then spend the rest of the night scrolling on his phone until he passes out.
Never in a million years would he have expected for the hottest idol out, Park Sunghoon, to show up randomly to his door and feed him sushi for lunch, then end up in his bed where the idol is all over him.
It’s actually crazy, considering how Sunoo gave less of a damn about him just a few months ago and now here he is laying pliant on his bed, refusing to let Sunghoon stop kissing and sucking marks on his skin.
“Sunghoon…”
“Hm?” He hums, leaving gentle kisses near his collarbone, “Do you want me to stop?”
“…No.” Sunoo gently pulls Sunghoon off, wanting him to finally kiss him on the lips but gets rejected.
“…We can’t,” Sunghoon looks at him with a sad smile, “I’m already pushing it starting… this. If we go any further I'm afraid I won’t be able to stop…”
“…What if I don’t want you to?”
“You’re adorable.” The idol sticks to his word and instead of indulging him he flips Sunoo to lay on his side while he himself presses his chest to his back, snaking his arms around his waist.
Sunoo already misses his soft, warm lips, “Are you getting sleepy on me?”
The hairs on the back of his neck stand up when Sunghoon softly laughs into it, “Can you hear it in my voice? Eating a big meal puts me to sleep real quickly.”
“How long more do you have your freedom for?”
“Until 8.”
“Then take a quick nap, I’ll look out for you,” Sunoo mutters, “You have a big day ahead of you, after all.” Sunghoon whispers a quick thank you and eventually drifts off to sleep.
☀️☀️☀️
Sunoo admires Sunghoon’s sleeping face once again, finding comfort in hearing his soft snores as he breathes in and out.
Sunoo had also fallen victim to sleep after overthinking the events of the afternoon between him and Sunghoon. Sunghoon kissed him, and Sunoo liked it.
Did his delusions actually come true? Does Sunghoon like him in that way?
And holy crap, Jay was right—God, if people found out they’d probably kill him over this for touching their beloved idol.
He slowly untangles himself from Sunghoon’s grasp, being careful not to wake him. Thankfully he does with no problems and slips out of bed and stretches out his limbs. He deduces that maybe they’ve been asleep for maybe three hours, and confirms himself right when he checks the time on his phone.
As Sunoo nears the door he pauses when he hears a voice coming from the other side, recognizing it to be Jay’s.
No—This is absolutely the wrong time for anyone else to be in the dorm right now, not with Sunghoon here. He creaks open the door to see what’s going on in the living room and all he sees is Jay alone in nothing but his boxers talking to himself about what he should cook for dinner.
Sunoo lets himself out of the room, closing the door behind him as quietly as possible before heading to the living room. “Where are your pants?”
“Oh fuck-” Jay jumps with a hand on his chest, startled, “Wait, you were here this whole time?”
“Duh, I live here,” Sunoo states the obvious, “Why are you walking around in your underwear?”
“Uh… my pants are in the room.”
“Jungwon’s room?”
“Yeah. But he’s asleep so keep your voice down.”
When it clicks in Sunoo’s brain he covers his mouth with his palm, looking at his friend sideways, “Oh my god—Did you guys have sex while I was down the hall?”
“We didn’t know you were here! And don’t get upset, it looks like you got busy too,” Jay points out, stretching his hand out to touch Sunoo’s neck. “Did you allow a fucking monster to bite your neck or what?”
“What-” Then he realizes, “Shit.”
“Is he in there right now? Is he hot? Stop gatekeeping him and lemme see-”
“No. He’s-” He blocks Jay from going near his door, “He’s also asleep.”
“Alright. I’ll be very quiet as I quickly peek through the door-”
“No—I-I mean, you can’t go in there he’s… naked. You don’t wanna see another man’s genitalia, do you?”
“…Well-”
“Point is only I can see his dick, okay-” He stutters, pushing Jay away, “Just please go.”
“Fine, fine. I’ll slither back into the room and only come back out after you successfully sneak your boy toy out of the dorm,” Jay says dryly but thankfully backs down, “But as soon as he leaves I will interrogate you.”
“Fine by me—I’ll successfully avoid answering you anyway.”
Sunoo waits for Jay to lock himself in Jungwon’s room then goes back to his room. Walking in he’s surprised to see Sunghoon awake, putting on his shoes. “Oh, you’re awake.” He closes the door behind him, “You didn’t, um. You didn’t hear much, did you?”
“No, Sunoo. I totally didn’t hear you saying how you’re the only one allowed to see my naked glory.”
“You added some words.”
“Same difference,” He muses, standing from the bed and walks to meet Sunoo by the door. They stand face to face, “Unfortunately, I do have to go now. But, I did have fun with you.”
“Me too… And sorry that the others are also here. Usually they go to Jay’s apartment instead so I really didn’t expect their presence.”
“It’s fine, Sun. It does suck a little that I have to cut my visit with you short but at least I came by early enough to hang out with you.”
“Booo, you spent half the time taking a nap,” Sunoo’s also guilty of that, though. He goes for another hug, because why not? It’s considered tame after everything else they did, “I’ll miss you.”
“You finally admitted it,” He can hear the smile in Sunghoon’s voice, “But you’ll see me tomorrow.”
“Yeah, onstage. It won’t be the same, it won’t be like this,” Sunoo hugs him tighter, still not wanting their time together to end just yet. He hates the way he became so attached so quickly.
“Chin up,” Sunghoon lifts his hand to his cheek and angles his head up, “I’ll try and see if I can video call you tomorrow night to catch up after the show. We can then brainstorm some ideas on what excuses I should use next to come by your school. Deal?”
“A very good deal…” Sunoo ends up staring directly at Sunghoon’s lips, so plush and pink. He anticipates Sunghoon finally giving in and granting him a kiss given how close their lips are to touching, but still there’s nothing.
Instead, Sunghoon leans down and goes for his neck once again, tilting Sunoo’s head in the opposite direction so he’s able to attach his mouth to kiss, staying there as if wanting to leave an imprint of his lips on his neck forever.
Once again, Sunoo realizes that he really is sensitive, becoming weak to Sunghoon’s simple touches and molding himself to be whatever Sunghoon wants because he himself wants that, but tenfold.
Afterwards they stand there hugging for a really long time until Sunghoon says that he really has to go, and kisses Sunoo on the cheek one last time.
Sunoo leads him by his hand and sneaks him out of the dorm. Watching the door close behind the idol he lingers by the doorway, still caught up in what he experienced. His body is tingling, still remembering the way Sunghoon touched him, how he kissed him.
He’s in such a daze that his ears don’t even register when Jay snakes out of the room, ready to interrogate him about the mysterious guy.
Too bad for him, though, because Sunoo’s still daydreaming about when he’ll get to have Sunghoon to himself again next.
☀️☀️☀️
Sir you fucked up my neck
*Attachment: 1 image*
[MY MAN💛💛]:
You call it fucked up I call it beautiful 😌
It’s like a pretty necklace
Necklace my ass
Jay said I looked like I was attacked by a bear
I can’t go out like this ☹️☹️
[MY MAN💛💛]:
I’d say be proud, flaunt it
It keeps the pests away anyway
? Pests
You mean like bugs ?
[MY MAN💛💛]:
Ahh ur adorable
Send the vid u took of us btw
Ok
*Attachment: 1 Video*
What are you gonna do with it 🤨
[MY MAN💛💛]:
Nothing dirty don’t worry im a gentleman
My neck shows otherwise
[MY MAN💛💛]:
Hushhh
The videos just my motivation to help me get pumped for tomorrows show
Especially if a cutie like u is in the crowd tomorrow ;)))
Ur gross
But good luck tomorrow hyung
Ill be cheering u on
[MY MAN💛💛]:
☺️☺️☺️
Thank u sunny
I cant wait to see u again
☀️☀️☀️
“He’s here, Sunghoon’s really here!” Jungwon bounces around in excitement like a child in a candy store, “I’m so happy it makes me wanna jump off a mountain and plunge into the depths.”
Jay slings an arm around his shoulders, mostly trying to mitigate the trouble of whatever his boyfriend may be thinking of. “That’s… definitely one way to express your emotions.”
Despite the event not starting until late afternoon, Jungwon insisted that they should arrive a few hours earlier since he knows firsthand how hectic and crowded the place would get due to Sunghoon’s popularity.
Sunoo’s walking a little bit behind them, and Riki walks alongside him, “You weren’t kidding when you said he was a really big fan…”
“Told you so. He carries on like that yet somehow I’m the dramatic one…”
“Well, two things can be true at the same time,” He starts to tease, “Remember the time at work when you got so scared to enter the break room because what you thought was a giant spider turned out to be only a forgotten chocolate munchkin from the cafe in the mall?”
“Yeah well. You’re the same one who once thought me, Jay, and Jungwon were a throuple, so.”
Just like Jungwon wanted, they made it to the front row and stayed there until the show started. The first few musical acts were artists that Sunoo never heard of, but the crowd seemed to vibe with them a lot, Riki included. Sunoo considers it him just being out of the loop, and files away a mental note to check out these artists later.
It’s clear that as the headliner of the event Sunghoon’s performance would be saved for the middle or towards the end, just to keep people from leaving so early. It’s a smart strategy but such an annoyance for Sunoo who quite literally only came to see Sunghoon.
Sunoo endures maybe an hour and a half of performances until they finally announce Sunghoon’s turn to take the stage.
“Helloooo Yeolgwi University!”
The screams of the crowd as he said his opening remarks were deafening to Sunoo’s ears, but music to Sunghoon’s. The idol smirks, fiddling with his in-ear piece as he introduces the first song, “I thought it would be fun to start off with a throwback—So here’s ‘Ballad of a Deranged Nineteen Year Old’!”
“That’s my favorite fucking song!” Jungwon screeches as Sunghoon starts singing, and Sunoo swore he saw the idol laugh.
“I really hope he sings ‘Bruises From My Tiny Jean Shorts’…” He also hears Riki mutter, and after four songs or so his wish is granted.
At least those two got what they wanted, but for Sunoo he’s anticipating hearing one song in particular.
“It’s so sad that the performance is coming to a close, I had so much performing in front of you all today,” Sunghoon breathes into the mic, looking apologetic. The audience erupts in a series of groans, all of which not wanting him to leave and begging him to stay, “Wow, you guys really love me. Well, I love you all just as much so I guess I have time for just one more song.”
He signals the band behind him to start up again, and the instruments bring Sunoo a sense of familiarity, “This last song should be fresh in you guys minds, right?” Sunghoon points the mic to the crowd where everyone screams back a YES, “Heh, nice. Well it seems like you all know this one, feel free to sing along.”
Sunghoon’s opening vocals are the lyrics to ‘Pretty Boy’, a melody and words that Sunoo has ingrained into his brain after having it on repeat for months since the day it came out.
The moon keeps me away yet gravity’s pulling me closer to you
Wish I was normal, forced to be a fool begging for a pretty boy.
Sunoo finds himself singing along softly, too. A song has never moved him as much as this one did, as corny as it sounds. Maybe because it’s more personal to him, it was written specially to his tastes after all, how could he not love it? The song is special to him, to them.
Him and Sunghoon.
The idol in question had never taken his eyes off Sunoo from the moment he began singing the song. Sunoo only noticed because he was also staring back.
For the last verse Sunghoon does something different: He hops down the stage and comes near the audience barricade, surveying the crowd.
His eyes zero on Jungwon who’s right beside Sunoo. Sunghoon makes a whole show out of it, serenading Jungwon as if he was a prince trying to court a maiden. As he draws out the last note, he gently takes one of Jungwon’s hands and presses his lips to the back of his hand. Naturally the crowd goes crazy after witnessing Park Sunghoon do such blatant fanservice with a fan.
Sunghoon makes it back onstage just as the band finished playing. He thanks the audience for coming to the charity event and reminds them one last time to donate to the cause, before making his exit.
And with that the event officially comes to an end, because of course the school wasn’t dumb enough to schedule an act after Sunghoon knowing that everyone would just leave afterwards.
“Okay, rate that experience on a scale from 1-10.” Jungwon poses to them once they clear out the pit and make their way to a more cleared area, looking at them all expectedly. “A solid 10, right?”
“Compared to everyone else who performed? Absolutely,” Riki agrees, “Especially when he jumped down from the stage and flirted with you out of everyone else, that’s like top tier crowd work in my opinion—I’m almost jealous.”
Sunoo’s a little jealous too, but he doesn’t voice his thoughts. He observes Jay who’s unusually quiet, which Jungwon also notices and grabs his attention, linking their arms together, “Jay, Jay—Did you see? Park Sunghoon sang to me.”
Jay clenches his jaw, “Believe me. We all saw.”
Jungwon, surprised at his sour attitude, unlinks their arms, “Oh… sorry.”
“No, I’m sorry—That was uncalled for.” He apologizes, “I’m gonna walk around a bit, I’ll meet you guys later.”
As they all watch Jay leave Jungwon tries to go after him but Sunoo stops him, “I’ll go,” He says, “You two wait outside the dorm for the food we ordered, Jay and I will meet back up with you guys. Just give us a minute.”
Jungwon seemed like he wanted to say something but decided against it, choosing to listen to his words and go with Riki back to the dorm. Sunoo goes in the direction where Jay ran off to to look for him and eventually found him leaning against one of the school buildings, sulking.
Sunoo approaches him carefully, “You okay?”
Jay doesn’t look up from the ground, “What do you think?”
“I think that you’re not,” Sunoo copies him and also leans against the wall of the building, “Be honest, were you jealous?”
“Am I that easy to read?” Jay confirms without stating it outright, “It’s childish of me to be upset, right? It was just a meaningless celebrity-fan interaction and yet…”
“It isn’t childish, Jay. Your feelings are valid.”
“Is it? I mean, I thought I was over my insecurities a long time ago but seeing Jungwon so easily impressed by that guy… I don’t know. The whole thing just brought back memories of ‘he who shall not be named’, the scenario is almost a repeat of back then—Save for the celebrity aspect.”
Sunoo understands where he’s coming from, he’s listened to Jay tell him plenty of stories about how his ex treated him, how easily they were swept off their feet by another man despite still being in a relationship with him. “You have nothing to worry about, Jay. Jungwon isn't anything like that guy, he would never betray you like he did.”
“I know he isn’t, doesn’t mean I still won’t have these thoughts.” He sighs deeply, “…It just gets a little annoying sometimes with how often he brings up Sunghoon.”
“I get what you mean… but if that’s what makes him happy then, oh well.”
“I know, and I love seeing him happy, believe me, but at the same time whenever he thirsts after Sunghoon publicly in my face… I unfortunately become a jealous prick. It’s lame.”
“Have you told him any of this? Like how these topics make you uncomfortable?”
“Maybe a few times…? But I think he thinks I'm just teasing and so he plays it off as a joke every single time.”
That sounds about right, Jungwon’s naturally playful at heart and usually won’t take things seriously unless you tell him outright. “I think you should sit him down tonight and actually talk about your feelings before it gets worse somehow.”
“You’re right…” Jay nods, now sure of himself, “You’re right. I’ll try.”
“Good. Now let’s head back, I’m starving.”
☀️☀️☀️
The four of them have grouped in Sunoo and Jungwon’s kitchen, eating their Chinese takeout. The conversation while they ate was nice, talking about the series of concerts today and other shit. Sunoo was mostly a listener, stuffing his face with noodles while Jungwon and Riki mostly steered the conversation among them.
Jay was also quiet, keeping to himself and ate while everyone else talked. He didn’t really speak up until now, when he pulls Jungwon aside and they go to his room to have their talk, Sunoo assumes.
“Uh oh, trouble in paradise…” Riki instigates, “You think they’ll be okay?”
“It’s nothing too serious, they’ll be fine,” Jay’s too loyal and Jungwon’s obsessed with him at the end of the day no matter how much he talks about Sunghoon, “A little argument is nothing to them.”
Riki hums. “But besides that, you had fun right? I noticed you couldn’t stop smiling during Sunghoon’s set.”
“I may not like his usual music but I can admit that he is indeed a good performer.” Although Sunoo wishes that Sunghoon would’ve serenaded him instead, Sunghoon did eye him up and even winked at him at one point during the performance so he’s content. Plus Jungwon’s a huge fan and he knew that, Jungwon definitely deserved it.
“Is this you admitting that you’re finally a fan?”
“Hey, I didn’t admit shit—All I said is that he was entertaining to watch, as all idols should be.”
His phone on the table buzzes with a message from Sunghoon, Call tonight?
“Who’s that?” Riki peeks over his shoulder to sneak a peek, “Your boyfriend?”
Knowing exactly what he changed Sunghoon’s contact name to, he tries to hide his phone screen, “Oh, um. It’s not what-”
But too late, he already saw. “It’s alright, Sunoo hyung. There’s no need to save face,” Riki reassures, “I know you’re not interested in me in that way, I can take the hint.”
“…I’m sorry,” He sighs, apologizing. At least he doesn’t have to feel so guilty for not reciprocating his feelings anymore. “I really didn’t mean to lead you on…”
“You didn’t, don’t worry,” Riki says, “First and foremost I’m your friend—If I have at least that then it’s cool.”
“You’re unusually calm about this,” If he were him he’d probably be all dramatic about his unrequited love, sliding down walls crying.
“Probably because I honestly saw this coming, so I was prepared,” He explains, “And good thing I did, considering you clearly have someone else.”
“I…” Sunoo’s voice trails, then Riki points to his neck. Sunoo looks down and immediately his hands fly to cover his neck, “Shit—I thought I covered everything…” This is literally so humiliating—If Riki saw and didn’t say anything about the hickies littering his neck, does that mean everyone else saw?
“You tried your best,” Riki teases, patting him on his back.
Saving Sunoo from his embarrassment Jay interrupts it by coming out of the room, “Sunoo? I’m heading out now.”
“Okay?” He replies, not meaning for it to come out sounding confused but it did anyway, “I’ll see you tomorrow, Jay.”
“…I should probably go too, give you and Jungwon the chance to talk,” Riki alludes to the situation.
“Okay, see you bright and early Sunday at the store.” He hugs Riki goodbye and watches him go out in the hallway, trailing behind Jay.
Sunoo locks back the door and goes and knocks on Jungwon’s door, worried, “Wonie? Are you alright? Do you wanna talk?”
Jungwon replies back with a simple ‘No’ from the other side of the door, which Sunoo takes a hint that the younger is not in the mood right now.
Which leaves him wondering what the hell happened with his and Jay’s conversation that resulted in Jungwon shutting himself in his room and Jay leaving. Clearly nothing good.
Later on in the night gets on call with Sunghoon, explaining the situation. “Wow… I’m so hot that my presence alone almost broke up a couple.”
“Sunghoon they’re my friends—How could you laugh at that?”
“Sorry, sorry. But you said those two were basically halfway to marriage, surely a little argument like that isn’t enough to break them up.”
“That’s what I thought, but Jay literally left without him. Do you know the last time Jungwon has slept over in his own room?”
“Uhhh, last night?”
“Well yes—But my point is wherever Jungwon is Jay is, and vice versa. Those two are inseparable.”
“If you say they are then they are. I’m sure it’s just a hiccup anyway, hopefully they’ll kiss and make up by tomorrow.” Sunghoon sighs, “Though this does ruin my plans…”
“What plans?” Sunghoon then explains to him his grand idea: His newest album will be released soon and for the first time his management will be hosting an album listening party the day at an air BnB before its actual release. Apparently those invited are executives, producers, etc, as well as lucky fans chosen from social media through a raffle. Sunghoon wanted Sunoo and his friends to come.
“Honestly it’s also a coverup for me to see you again in person and since I knew Jungwon was a huge fan it worked out perfectly. But it’s kinda terrible timing…”
“Just do it, I doubt they’ll still be fighting by then.”
“Wow, you’re just really eager to see me, aren’t you?” He smirks, “I guess seeing me onstage today wasn’t enough?”
“You wish.”
☀️☀️☀️
Not even two weeks later Jungwon gets an email from Sunghoon’s official team detailing the invite to the album listening party. The email also says that he can bring along two guests, how convenient.
“Have you told Jay about it yet?” After the whole charity event situation Sunghoon was worried his friends wouldn’t be okay after their talk, he assumes, went south. Though he still doesn’t know the full details Sunoo assumes they’re good now, if Jungwon sleeping over at Jay’s apartment three times a week is anything to go by.
“I’m not going to,” Jungwon tells him, nose deep into his phone, “He doesn't like it when I talk so much about Sunghoon so why would I take him to an event that literally revolves around him?”
“Sorry, dumb question.”
“It’s not dumb, don’t worry. I was thinking of inviting him to it anyway because he likes fancy events like that—But I don’t wanna upset him since things between us are good again… and I really don’t have it in me to argue about the topic again.”
Sunoo understands, those two despise conflict more than anything so if there’s a way to avoid it, they will. “Well, there goes our ride…”
“I was thinking of inviting Riki instead, he's a huge fan so it makes sense. I’ll have someone to fanboy with unlike you who will side eye me the whole time and complain,” Jungwon jabs, “Actually, I’m surprised you even want to go.”
“At the end of the day it’s a celebrity event, I would never pass up an opportunity like that.” And totally not because he gets the appeal of Sunghoon now and is kinda desperate to see him again… totally not that.
Another three weeks pass by and it’s finally the day of the event. The venue was a fancy house rental hidden with some trees, and if it weren’t for the bright ass spotlights, flashing party lights and the booming bass of the music speakers Sunoo would’ve thought he was being led to his death because of the unorthodox location.
But thankfully that is far from the case as they get out of their cab and are checked into the party with ease. Walking through the courtyard alone was like taking a tour of a luxurious modern day castle: a lit up disco dance floor on the left and a pool on the right—And Sunoo’s pretty sure someone is setting off fireworks as well. “This all seems way too grand for an album listening party…”
“Maybe but, who are we to complain?” Riki comes up behind him and Jungwon, throwing his arms over their shoulders, “I say we hit up the dance floor first, they’re doing the conga line!”
“But what about the food?” Jungwon complains, “According to the itinerary they stop serving appetizers at 9 pm. It’s 8:30.”
“Don’t you eat food everyday? Exactly, but often do you see a multicolored dance platform with people doing the conga line?”
“Not very often…”
“Exactly. Pick your poison.”
“Wait, there was an itinerary?” Sunoo asks, “When does Sunghoon perform?”
“At 11, which means we should be back here around 10:45 so we can get a good viewing spot.” Jungwon answers, “So Riki if you wanna dance it’s better if we do it now.”
“Don’t have to tell me twice.”
Sunoo was dragged onto the dance floor against his will, and normally he would enjoy this but his mind is distracted by other things, with thoughts of a particular person.
Before they left for the event Sunghoon messaged him telling him to keep his phone close. Sunoo took that to heart, he made sure his phone was fully charged and had his notifications off silent just so he doesn’t miss a text.
“Come on, loosen up, hyung,” Jungwon yells over the music and lightly slaps his arm, realizing that Sunoo isn't totally all there.
“Sorry, I think I’m just feeling lightheaded. I didn’t eat much before we left.”
“What?”
“I said-” Sunoo leans close to his ear, “I’m feeling lightheaded, I think I’m gonna go get some of the hors d’oeuvres.”
Jungwon nods, “Okay!” Though Sunoo used the food excuse as a lie his stomach did start growling as soon as he wandered away from his friends and started thinking about food.
He’s not really sure where to go either, but walks around anyway hoping to find at least a waiter or a food table somewhere.
Sunoo did not end up finding where the food is but instead found himself in the backyard after walking through the side entryway. There there’s a mini stage set up, waiting for Sunghoon to perform, and a lot more people back here mostly networking, Sunoo could tell by the fancy suits.
“Enjoying yourself?” A voice whispers from behind, and Sunoo almost jumps at the random creep coming up to him like that until he realizes it’s Sunghoon.
“I am now,” Sunoo turns around to face him, smiling, “You guys went all out for a simple album release party. I mean, who just casually has a dance floor and a pool in the same vicinity?”
“Are you kidding, that’s the best part! Did you see the conga line? I thought it was so cute.”
“Just came from it, actually. I left to go find the food table but I can’t seem to find it anywhere…”
“Oh that? Yeah, that was finished a long time ago.”
“What?” Sunoo says, maybe a bit too loudly, “How? I thought they would be serving until 9.”
“It’s well past 9,” Sunoo’s face quite literally drops once he pulled out to check the time on his phone to confirm, and Sunghoon just laughs, “Didn’t you eat before you came?” He sighs when Sunoo shakes his head no, “Tsk Tsk. Come with me and we’ll find you something to eat, I’m sure there’s some pastries left in the kitchen.”
Sunghoon drags him to a nearby sliding door and sneaks him into the house. The interior of the house was just as fancy as the front and backyard, which he expected, and the space was practically empty save for them.
“Welcome to mi casa!” Sunghoon makes a show out of it, spreading his arms wide and doing a little twirl like he’s some ringmaster in a circus after showing off his talents.
“This is an air BnB.” Sunoo giggles.
“Semantics, semantics.”
There are some trays of pastries left on the kitchen counter, which Sunghoon shows him, “Seems this is all we have left, hope you aren’t a picky eater.”
“Kinda, but these look too delicious for me not to eat,” Sunoo’s mouth waters, especially at the chocolate filled one.
That’s also the same one Sunghoon was coincidentally eyeing for himself, which he picks up, and takes a bite. “Wow, these are good.”
“Did you not get the chance to eat any earlier?”
“Nope, I kept getting dragged into conversations with these industry people that I hardly had the time to actually enjoy myself, let alone eat,” He complains. Sunghoon holds the pastry up to Sunoo’s mouth, “Here, try it.”
Against his better judgment Sunoo leans in and takes a bite, ignoring how overly domestic the act is. They take turns sharing the treat, Sunghoon next then Sunoo, until it was all gone.
They continued like that with the next five pastries that they ate, laughing and talking with each other as it’s been weeks since they saw each other in person.
And to be honest, talking to Sunghoon in person beats talking to him on the phone or texting him any day, seeing the idol in the flesh is much better in Sunoo’s eyes. It makes everything more real, a more authentic connection. “Question: Am I allowed to be in here?” Now that he thinks about it Sunoo’s name is just a line of ink on the invitee list to anyone who’s not Sunghoon, he definitely shouldn’t be in the house.
“You aren’t but, we should be fine. No one’s really gonna come in here.”
“But what if someone does? Then you’d have a lot of explaining to do and I’m definitely getting kicked off the premises and possibly blacklisted-”
“I seriously doubt that, everyone else is too busy people pleasing outside,” He says, “But that just means I get to keep you all to myself.” Sunghoon’s thumb swipes the excess crumbs from Sunoo’s mouth, a soft smile gracing his lips.
Sunoo bashfully darts his eyes elsewhere, “You’re so corny-”
“Sunoo!” Jake’s voice booms through the house and makes himself known, coming through the sliding door Sunoo and Sunghoon had entered through.
Sunoo gasps when he sees him, “Jake hyung!” They run to and meet each other halfway, Jake scooping him into a bear hug.
“Wow, Sunoo. You didn’t greet me like that…” Sunghoon remarks. In his peripheral, he can see him pouting.
Sunoo ignores him, “Hyung, I haven’t seen you in so long.”
“I know, right? I asked Sunghoon for your number but he just refused to give it to me and-”
“I didn’t ‘refuse’ anything-” The idol defends, “I just forgot…”
“It’s fine, I can just give you my contact info right now.” They both exchange numbers and quickly catch up, Jake detailing his work trip in America and what he’s been up to.
But that all gets interrupted when two people walk in—One of which Sunoo realizes is Sunghoon’s manager, also his father, and beside him a woman he guesses is an assistant.
“Sunghoon, Jake,” The older man calls out, “What’re you guys doing in here?” He asks, also eyeing Sunoo up. Sunghoon’s father is a tall man just like his son, Sunoo feels small under his gaze. “And this is…?”
“Kim Sunoo… sir,” He introduces himself, bowing.
“He’s a friend I made at a modeling shoot back in March,” Sunghoon steps in, “The Calvin Klein ad, remember?”
“Ah, I think I remember his face. He looks familiar,” His father nods along, approving, “Anyway, I’m here to remind you that you’re set to perform in about an hour. Be ready and don’t wander off, alright?”
“Yes, fa—Sir.”
“Good. And Jaeyun,” He calls his name, “Your father is asking for you by the stage. He wants to introduce a potential recruit to you.”
“Thank you for letting me know, I’ll head there straight away.”
Sunghoon’s dad gives them all a nod before turning away and exiting from where he came, his assistant following close behind.
Jake turns back to them, “Well, you two have an hour, make it count.” He pats them both on the shoulders and leaves the same way Sunghoon’s dad did. Sunghoon, wordlessly, grabs Sunoo’s hand and drags him up the stairs nearby.
They come to a stop and Sunghoon lets go when they reach the upstairs living room, which is basically a fancier version of the living room downstairs. Up here everything looks exactly like a movie theater.
“I didn’t mean to drag you up here, no explanation. It’s just… downstairs wasn’t as isolated as I thought it would be.” Sunghoon simultaneously explains and apologizes, but Sunoo doesn’t really mind. “And you probably want to get back to your friends, right?”
“It’s fine, they’ll be fine,” Sunoo should probably send a text to Jungwon telling him that he’s okay, he has been gone for a while. He does just that, “Besides, I hangout with them all the time. I rarely get to see you, so I’d rather stay.”
Intrigued by his answer, Sunghoon smirks, “Oh really?”
“Yes, really,” Sunoo quips, “We have only an hour, so let’s just take advantage of the time we have.”
Sunghoon nods along, going to sit in one of the large couches. “Come sit, then.” He pats the seat beside him. Sunoo does just that, leaving a considerable amount of space between them. For Sunghoon, it was too much space. “Why so far? Come closer, I don’t bite.”
He definitely does, as Sunoo vividly remembers the time Sunghoon was in his room the last time they saw each other. But, he complies, sliding over so he’s closer to Sunghoon, close enough that they’re knees touch. “Okay, now what?”
“Now we talk,” Sunghoon states, “About anything we want.”
“Ooh okay…” Sunoo relaxes back on the couch, thinking about the first topic that comes to mind, “So that old guy down there… that was your dad—I mean, manager, right?”
“Right.”
“Has… Has anyone told you that your dad is such a dilf?”
Sunghoon’s mouth literally drops open as soon as those words left Sunoo’s mouth, “Sunoo…” He says with such disappointment, “There’s no way you actually said that to my face.”
“Oh, my bad—You said that we could talk about anything-”
“You could’ve chosen to literally talk about anything else and you choose to talk about how hot my dad is?” He shudders, “Ugh, I don’t even want to think about it…”
Sunoo laughs, not feeling particularly bad at all, “If it’s any consolation you’re like a spitting image of him, but obviously younger and no facial hair.” Now that it comes to his attention, Sunghoon would look good with a slight mustache.
“I’ll just take that as you calling me hot.” Sunghoon rolls his eyes with no ill intent, “This was not how I wanted first impressions to go…”
Sunoo quirks a brow, “Impressions of what? Me meeting your manager?”
“Yep,” He pops the ‘p’, “I didn’t tell you this before but my manager is very much a skeptic, all those times I came up with excuses to go out alone without security or just sneak my phone calls with you he’d always harass me about it like I’m not a fucking grown adult.” He sighs, “I mean, I planned to come clean about you at some point, just not like… that.”
Sunoo feels flattered that Sunghoon’s considers him important enough to introduce him to his father, whether as a friend or something else. “Isn’t it off putting to you that you have to refer to him as your manager and not as your dad?”
Sunghoon shrugs, “Eh, I’m used to it. And don’t get me wrong, he’s not abusive or horrible to be around or anything—It just feels suffocating that he has to micromanage everything I do… pun intended.”
Sunoo takes the chance and grabs his hand, interlacing their fingers together. “Obviously I still don’t know much about you two’s relationship and maybe I don’t have the right to say this but, I believe things will get better. One day he’ll open his eyes and realize that you aren’t a kid anymore and that you’re your own person. He should start looking at you more as a son rather than a client to manage.”
“…Thank you.” Sunghoon tells him with gratitude evident in his tone, “I just have to communicate that to him soon and hope he finally gets it.” He squeezes Sunoo’s hand, “Maybe I’ll write a song about it.”
“You definitely should, it’ll be a hit.”
“Will you actually listen to it?” The idol teases, inching closer to his face. Sunoo playfully turns Sunghoon’s cheek the other way.
“Maybe, if I like it enough.”
“How would you know if you like it or not if you don’t listen to it first?”
Sunoo purses his lips, “You tell me. Will you make it sound anything like ‘Pretty Boy’?”
“I’d rather not have a song written about my daddy issues be so similar to one where I simp for a boy for four minutes straight.”
“Aha-” Sunoo catches him on his slip, “So ‘Pretty Boy’ was about you liking a boy.”
“Uh, surprise?” It comes out sounding confusing, “I thought I confirmed this with you? Back when you asked me in the hot tub?”
Oh, right. “To be fair you were really vague when I asked you about it the first time. You only explained what the song was about, yet never told me ‘who’.”
“Do you really wanna know that badly?” Sunghoon muses, “Are you jealous? Did you want the song to be about you?”
Sunoo hoped that the song was about him. It was written specially for him after all, how could he not delude himself into thinking it was? Any person with common sense would. “Then… who is it about?”
Sunghoon stares into his eyes for a couple of moments, then licks his lips. “It’s about you.”
Sunoo really wasn’t expecting him to be so upfront about it, but it’s Sunghoon he’s talking about here. “I’m sorry, what?”
“I thought it was obvious, Sunoo,” The idol nervously laughs, “I made the song with you in mind after all, and anxiously waited by my phone to hear your opinion about it.”
His cheeks are on fire, “S-So the pretty boy in question was-”
“It was you all along, don’t worry.”
“Wait-” Sunoo unlaces their fingers and rises from the couch, walking away, “Wait, wait, wait—This is so much to process at once. I’m the pretty boy? I get that the song is inspired by me but the lyrics are… Y-You like me?”
“How could I not like you?” Sunghoon stands too, “You’re beautiful, nice, and a great listener. You helped bring out the hidden creativity within me that I’m forever grateful for and most importantly you treat me like I’m an actual person,” He begins listing off qualities, “I can be vulnerable around you because you see me for who I truly am… You’re one of the few people I know that would still stick beside me even if I weren’t a global idol.”
“Sunghoon, hyung—This… This is a lot….”
“I know, and I understand,” He nods, “But you did ask, this is just me being honest about it.”
Honesty… right. Sunoo loves honesty, and he should’ve seen it coming when he pressured Sunghoon to reveal who ‘Pretty Boy’ was about.
Sunoo desperately wanted the song to be about him, but now that Sunghoon actually confirmed it for some reason he’s freaking out. Maybe because it cements Sunoo’s fantasies as being real, fantasies he daydreamed about him and Sunghoon being an item.
It was all fake, it was never supposed to be real—Sunoo was delusional but not that delusional that he believed him and Sunghoon could ever happen. They belong in two different worlds, they were never supposed to meet.
But they did, and Sunoo’s glad that he missed the train that day. Because even if the two of them belong in different worlds, one of fame and fortune and the other lives an ordinary college experience, here they stand face to face.
Sunghoon has been nothing but honest even if Sunoo initially thought the opposite of him, now it’s his turn to be the same.
He calms himself, “Can I tell you something?”
The idol perks up, “Of course you can.”
“I was really, really hoping the song was about me.”
Sunghoon’s face soon blossoms into a beautiful smile, “Really? That’s good, ‘cause I like you a lot, Sunoo. So much so that it’s embarrassing.”
“…I like you too, hyung,” Sunoo blushes, biting his lip, “When we first talked I admit that I already had an image of created in my head, I thought of you as a stereotypical, arrogant celebrity that was just superficial and didn’t care about music at all—Now that I’ve gotten to know the real you that couldn’t be farther from the truth. You care so much about your music, you live, sleep, eat and breathe it. You’re talented, and not only that but you’re kind, so kind to me that you take time out of your busy schedule just to check up on me… I’m really glad I got to know you beyond just you as an idol.”
“Do you really mean that?”
“Of course I do,” He speaks from the heart, “I’ve never felt this strongly for anyone since… my ex. Even though I craved love I was afraid to catch feelings for someone again, but with you it felt so easy that I didn’t even realize my own feelings at first.”
Sunghoon leans in slightly, “And how about now? Are you over him?”
Truth be told, Sunoo hasn’t thought much of Heeseung in weeks, “I am.”
“Good, because I’m going to kiss you in five seconds,” He declares, gently cradling Sunoo’s face in his hands. “If you don’t want me to, feel free to push me away.”
“You know full well I’m not going to do that.”
Sunghoon simply smiles, and starts counting. “5… 4…” But as Sunoo told him he doesn’t plan to move an inch. “3… 2…”
And on one, Sunghoon angles Sunoo’s head down and plants a kiss to his forehead. A forehead kiss means a lot of things, symbolizing care and sincerity as Sunoo read somewhere. Sunghoon then goes for his cheeks, kissing both sides respectively. Then the tip of his nose, his chin, and when Sunoo believes he’ll finally kiss him on the mouth Sunghoon fakes him out and instead presses a kiss to its corner.
Sunoo physically groans at Sunghoon’s obvious stalling and decides to take matters into his own hands: He curls his fingers around Sunghoon’s wrists and pushes his head further, capturing the idol's lips with his own.
Sunghoon’s kisses feel exactly how it did back in his dream, almost like Sunoo had manifested the feeling into real life. As a matter of fact, his dream doesn’t even compare to the real life thing, as kissing Sunghoon feels like he’s floating in water in a setting where everything is serene and warm.
Without breaking the kiss, Sunoo strategically moves Sunghoon’s hands from his face down to his waist then circles his own around the idol’s neck. This way they’re able to be closer, leaving absolutely no space in between as both their fronts are pressed against one another.
Then, Sunghoon gets adventurous and his lips travel down to his jaw then finally settle on neck. He’s nibbling and sucking on Sunoo’s skin, and half of him wants to speak up and tell Sunghoon that maybe it isn’t the brightest idea to leave marks on skin because how is he able to explain himself out of that? But instead he chose to stay quiet, because it feels so good.
Sunghoon presses a long kiss over the spot he just previously sucked, then buries his nose in between the crevices of Sunoo’s neck and shoulder. “Do you want to see my room?”
☀️☀️☀️
Belonging upstairs were also the various rooms the rental house came with, all each equipped with a private bathroom. It was just as nice as the other areas of the house, but being in the room felt much more different. More intimate.
Sunghoon locks the door. “That’s the bed,” He points to the aforementioned thing, “Those are the walls, a lamp, and some nice paintings of… something.”
“Uh huh-” Sunoo responds to whatever he said, grabbing Sunghoon’s face and connecting their lips once more.
Sunoo’s not sure where he’s getting this confidence from, making out with a renowned idol and all. Any ounce of anxiety he may have been feeling before is completely gone. All he feels left is his burning desire for the man alone in the room with him.
Little by little, they find themselves going backwards and eventually hit the edge of the bed, Sunoo going down first and Sunghoon landing on top of him.
Sunoo smiles into the kiss, laughing at how drastically different he believed the night to go. He left his friends with the intent of looking for something to eat and that somehow ended with him falling into bed with the Park Sunghoon.
“Sunoo,” Sunghoon whispers, pulling away that only the tips of their noses touch, “What are we doing?”
“I don’t know… but it’s fun.” They’re kissing, which was all Sunoo had been thinking about ever since that moment they shared in the hot tub way back when. “Do you want to stop…?”
“What? Of course not—That’s the last thing that I want to do. God knows how long I’ve been wanting to kiss you,” Sunghoon expresses with such passion, “I just wanted to make sure that you were okay with what is happening.”
“Believe me, I’m so okay with it,” Sunoo leans slightly up to kiss him firmly on the mouth as proof, “I like this, hyung, so let’s just continue and see where it leads? We’re on a time crunch, aren’t we?”
Sunghoon quickly checks the watch on his left wrist, “Only thirty minutes left until I have to be on stage…”
Thirty minutes? Sunoo could work with that. “Then let’s make it count.”
With this shared resolve to continue, they connect once more. This time however, Sunghoon wastes no time slipping his tongue into Sunoo’s mouth, which the latter welcomes graciously, and grinds his hips down that Sunoo feels his growing boner.
His body feels hot all over, and it especially tingles when Sunghoon’s hot lips find their way to his neck again and kiss down his throat. In contrast his cold hands slip under his shirt, which Sunoo unintentionally moans at when they come in contact with his ribs. Sunghoon smirks, clearly enjoying himself as he kisses Sunoo again only to part after he slid his shirt up to his chin then over his head, where it was eventually tossed to the floor.
The rest of Sunoo’s clothes follow suit, leaving him bare and on display. Sunghoon admires him like he’s some sort of shiny new trophy. “You’re beautiful,” He voices his thoughts and Sunoo shyly mumbles a quick ‘thank you’.
Sunghoon touches his half hard length after asking for permission, thumbing at the precum that’s already starting to leak from his tip. It’s no surprise that Sunoo shivers, and even more so when the male starts stroking him slowly. They’ve barely even started and yet he’s already feeling over the edge.
“Good?” Sunghoon checks in, standing so calm while in contrast Sunoo writhed beneath him.
“So good-” It comes out as a whisper. It’s good, but Sunoo wants to feel great, “Hoon—I want more…”
“Of what, Sun?” He whispers back, “Talk to me.”
“I…” He tries, “I just want you. I want-” Sunoo tries grasping for his hips, wanting him to be even closer.
Sunghoon gets the hint, leaning down and kissing his forehead. “Okay.”
Sunoo was going to question why Sunghoon had lube and condoms prepared and ready to use in his bedside drawer but the question became completely forgotten as he gasped, feeling Sunghoon’s finger enter him.
Then one turns into two, three, then none. What comes next is Sunghoon once again asking for permission, and after being given the green light he pushes forward, penetrating until his dick is mostly buried inside Sunoo.
It’s definitely been a while since Sunoo had sex, so he was grateful that Sunghoon had given him a few minutes to adjust to his size. He taps the idol's shoulder, letting him know he’s good to start moving.
The first few strokes admittedly hurt but soon that hurt transformed into pleasure. He tried to be as quiet as he could and it sucked that he couldn’t be as loud as he wanted, but in truth it was also thrilling how he had to be quiet since they weren’t really supposed to be doing this, especially since Sunghoon has to perform in less than twenty minutes.
Any minute now someone could knock on the door looking for Sunghoon, totally unaware that he’s preoccupied doing other things, doing Sunoo.
For a moment Sunoo whines at the loss of Sunghoon being inside him, only to be in full spirits again when he’s flipped over, face down ass up and his hands bound behind his back. Sunghoon stalls and gently spanks one of his cheeks before entering him once more, and Sunoo feels like he’s in heaven.
After not having sex for a year and a half after dealing with the aftermath of his break up with Heeseung, Sunoo felt admittedly pent up because even though there were potential suitors to help him with his dry spell he never liked any of them enough to fuck them. He thought he was cursed.
But now he feels like it was a blessing in disguise, since because it’s been so long he’s able to feel Sunghoon tenfold, Sunoo’s almost forgotten that sex was this good.
“Fuck, fuck, fuck-” Sunoo whimpers into the mattress. Somehow, Sunghoon’s thrusts are gentle, yet rough at the same time, Sunoo can’t keep up. Just a little more and he won’t be able to stop himself from coming. “Sunghoon, I-” He’s cut off as he gets flipped back over on his back. Sunghoon goes between his legs and hikes them around his waist, lunging forward to kiss him.
“I’m so close, Sunny,” Sunghoon whispers against his lips, saying the nickname the idol gave him and usually refers to him in text. It’s the first time Sunoo believes that he’s saying it out loud.
He responds by gripping for life on Sunghoon’s shirt which has never been taken off. Now that he realizes practically all of the idol’s clothes are still on, being fully clothed save for his pants that’s pooled around his ankles, leaving Sunoo to be the only one between them that’s naked.
Sunoo cums first all over his stomach, tongue kissing Sunghoon all throughout his orgasm. A few thrusts later and the idol follows, releasing inside the condom.
“Sorry about your shirt…” Sunoo lays there on the bed, panting and still feeling fucked out while Sunghoon was still in the right mind to pull out and pull up his pants, then clean Sunoo up with his shirt that the younger had soiled with his own cum.
It’s unfortunate but also fortunate because now Sunoo gets to see Sunghoon with his shirt off. The idol balls up the shirt in his hand before bending down to kiss Sunoo again. “It’s fine. If anything I now consider it a souvenir for safe keeping-”
“You’re literally disgusting,” Sunoo laughs at his weirdness, dodging more of his kisses. He caves, smooching him back and giving in to what he wants.
That is until Sunghoon gets ballsy and kisses the danger zone AKA his neck, “Hoon, we can’t—You need to freshen up get out of here so no one gets suspicious.”
He comes off his neck and pouts, “Is it so wrong of me to meet my kiss quota and bask in the very few minutes I have left tonight with my beloved?”
“I’m your beloved now?”
“Well, you could be,” He whispers, “…Do you want to?”
At this, Sunoo’s eyes widen. “Hyung… are you-”
He’s interrupted by a barrage of knocks on the door, “Sunghoon are you in there?” Sunoo recognizes the voice to be Sunghoon’s dad, “Why is the door locked, what are you doing?”
“Give me a sec-” He scrambles off Sunoo’s body, speedily picking up Sunoo’s clothes off the floor and pushing them in his hands, “You need to go-”
“Hyung, I-” But his words fall deaf on the idol’s ears as he digs in the closet and puts on a fresh clean shirt, “When will I see you again?”
“…I don’t know, but what I do know is that I have to perform in less than five minutes-” He comes back to Sunoo and caresses his cheek, “For now though, just put your clothes on in the bathroom and don’t come out the room until you wait it out after a few minutes, just until the coast is clear and you can sneak out, okay? I’ll see you soon.” Sunghoon pecks his lips one last time before pushing him into the bathroom.
On the other side he tries to listen in on the conversation, “What the hell were you doing in here, did you forget you have a whole performance to do and get ready for?” The manager reprimands, “And why did you change your shirt?”
“I got food stains all over it, relax,” Sunghoon lies, and the voices grow faint leading Sunoo to believe they’ve left. He lets out a breath he didn’t know he was holding, at least they weren’t caught like he was afraid of.
Sunoo observes himself in the large mirror, eyes zeroing in on the large red spot near his collarbone, thankfully it looks easy to cover up. He runs his fingers over the mark, blushing about the night he just had.
He just had sex. With Sunghoon.
The severity of it all just now dawns on him—He had just slept with the number one idol out right now. Said number one idol confessed that he liked him. And had possibly just asked him to be exclusive.
Sunoo quickly puts on his clothes, his friends must definitely be wondering where the hell he is right now. How is he gonna explain his way out of this one? Riki might let whatever he says slide but Sunoo knows Jungwon will bug him until he gets the truth.
He turns the knob and opens the door, peeking out to make sure the coast is clear. It’s empty, so he quietly closes the door behind him and hurries down the stairs and exits the way he came.
Sunoo makes his way to the backyard where everyone else is crowded by the stage. Knowing Jungwon he probably dragged Riki to the front, no way Sunoo could make it to them from where he is. He turns on back his phone and grimaces at the thousands of missed calls he got from his friends, and a few from Jay too.
He bites the bullet and calls Jungwon, “Hey…”
“Hyung? Where the fuck are you—You’ve been gone for like an hour and you never came back so we thought you got kidnapped since you never answered our calls and-”
“Wonie, I know. And I’m sorry,” He says sincerely, “I fucked up, I’m aware. I got distracted when I saw… an old friend. It’s no excuse that I turned off my phone and had you guys worry about me, I’m sorry.”
“You could’ve just texted that, hyung. We would’ve understood,” Jungwon says, “But fine, I forgive you. Where are you now? Riki and I are at the front.”
He called it, “The conversation I had with my… friend ran late, obviously. I’m standing at the very back.”
“Oh… that sucks. How interesting was this convo with your ‘friend’ that it kept you away from us?” He gets cheeky, “Was it a hot guy? Did you—Oh fuck he’s onstage! Gotta go, TTYL hyung.”
“Wha—Jungwon-” Suddenly Sunoo’s hung up on since Sunghoon takes priority. Of course.
Well, Sunoo doesn’t blame him. Somehow and so quickly he too has become smitten by the idol. He looks up to see Sunghoon already on stage with his guitar on his back and the band behind him, thanking everyone for attending the event. His hair’s no longer looking messy from Sunoo pulling on it just minutes ago, there was probably a stylist on standby that touched it up for him.
Sunghoon looks so happy onstage, too, and though Sunoo was half listening his ears perk at what he says next, “Before I begin, I just want to emphasize how meaningful and important the making of this album was for me. This time around I wanted to try out a new creative direction, something I was initially afraid to dive into but I’m glad I did since I can finally say that I’m proud of myself for pushing my boundaries. With that all being said I dedicate this album to the one who helped me realize my worth as a musical artist. Thank you, and I hope you all enjoy this new era of mine.”
The band starts playing the first song while Sunghoon waits out the intro. Sunoo stands there crossing his arms, waiting patiently for Sunghoon to sing the first note.
Damn, now he wishes he was at the front with his friends, he would’ve killed to see Sunghoon up close once more.
☀️☀️☀️