“Hey hyung.”

Receiving no response from the person he had called out, Sehun raised his arm to take a strand of Minseok's pink hair, playfully rolling it around between his fingers.

“Hyung.”

“What ?”

Minseok didn't move from his spot against the car's window, watching the scenery pass under the quiet rain, eyes fixed on an invisible spot. They had just left the dorms in direction of who knew what event they had on their schedule, and if every one of them looked tired, the eldest was down right exhausted. Sehun knew about his recent insomnia, knew about the battle he was fighting inside, but the young man wasn't someone Minseok could talk to, someone he could rely on. Because he was the youngest, Minseok would indulge him, playing along with his teasing, act as if he was his big brother – which, to Sehun, he was – but never would he be telling him about serious matters concerning him. It's not that it pissed Sehun off, he understood Minseok didn't want to tell him about all this. What unnerved him was that, since he didn't know, since he couldn't comprehend his friend's state, he couldn't do anything to help him.

“What's your favorite color ?”

This time Minseok stirred from his contemplation, glancing once at Sehun, curious, before going back to his first activity, watching the rain falling outside the window.

“Blue. Why ?”

Sehun didn't answer, only lightly taping the tip of his fingers on his phone's screen. Minseok was wondering what his friend needed the info for, and why he wouldn't tell him, well, why he wanted it. He didn't think much of it, thought, quickly forgetting the incident as a gray sky as well as the shadows of cars kept passing before his eyes.

But still, the interrogation kept nagging him, in the back of his mind.

+

“Hyung.”

Unlike the first time, Minseok hummed and turned around the first time Sehun called him.

“What ?”

Like in the morning, the younger wasn't looking at him, eyes straight on his phone. They had just left the building for their interview, ready to go back to their dorms – or, for most of them, rather the training rooms – and were comfortably installed in the same cars as earlier. Much like in the morning, Minseok was against the window, and Sehun beside him. Minseok observed the younger, his face unreadable as he munched on his lower lip, probably playing on a game – Minseok couldn't see and didn't have much interest in the answer, anyway.

“What's your favorite animal ?”

Minseok raised one of his thick eyebrows, taken aback by the sudden question. Noticing the lack of response from his friend, Sehun glanced at him – or rather the back of his head since the older one still hadn't turned his head from the window - , waiting for an answer, as if this question wasn't something out of the ordinary. Minseok took his time to think.

“I don't have a particular favorite one… Why do you want to know ?”

Sehun huffed, blowing air out of his mouth. “Come on, hyung, it's not that hard, pick an animal you like !”

The elder tilted his head toward him, looking at Sehun, this time.

“I like owls.”

Sehun giggled, smiling at his friend before going back on his phone. Much like in the morning, he didn't answer Minseok's interrogations, but the elder decided that if Sehun wanted to do something with those information, he would know soon enough. He rolled his head back on the window's cool glass. It was still raining, and even if Minseok had told himself not to think too much into Sehun's sudden interrogations, he couldn't help but be bothered by it.

+

“Hyung.”

Okay, Minseok, this is probably another one of his questions.

After the ride on the car, and the 'what's your favorite animal' question, Sehun hadn't said a word to the elder. Minseok was on edge, today, everything about Sehun screamed mischief, and maybe the younger was playing with him, maybe not, but Minseok was curious now.

“What now ?”

Sehun absently took a deep breath.

“Would you rather be rich and ugly or poor and handsome ?”

Minseok stopped whatever it was that he was doing – which was, well, nothing. He had just curled up on the couch when they came back and hadn't moved from his comfortable spot since then – and starred at Sehun.

“That's certainly not what I expected you'd say.”

Sehun his upper lip, scrolling down his phone's screen.

“Come on Hyung, answer !” He whined.

What a kid. Minseok snorted.

“I guess I'd rather be rich and ugly. There is still surgery.” Sehun giggled and Minseok smiled.

He liked making his younger friend laugh. He liked it when people laughed because of something he said in general. Minseok liked it when people around him where happy.

“Nice one. Would you rather… a smelly old guy's armpit or chew on his dirty toes ?”

Minseok's face twisted in what looked like a disgusted expression, but answered anyway.

“The armpit. Next.”

“Would you rather...” Sehun snorted and brought his teeth to capture his lower lip, keeping himself from laughing. “would you rather have a sized or a sized ?”

“OH MY GOD OH SEHUN”

The younger kept laughing even when Minseok threw a pillow on his face, then a second since Sehun had caught the first one. The second one landed straight into his head, making the younger yelp. At the same time, they both heard a door open in the hallway, and soon Jongdae passed them, hair wet from the shower he had just took. Seeing the commotion, he grabbed the first pillow Minseok had thrown, which had fallen on the floor, and proceeded to smash it on Sehun's face, suffocating him while laughing loudly. Minseok observed his two friends, and somehow, in this moment, he felt good, at peace. At his place. And maybe it had been a while since he had laughed so much, because his jaw and cheeks ached, and soon, Jongdae released Sehun from his deadly attack, and both turned to observe their friend laughing, quietly grinning.

Once Minseok caught on their stares, he got up, shying away from the attention. It felt like one of those time he would talk and everyone would stop to listen. It felt weird. Neither bad nor good, but weird. Because people wanted to listen to what he had to say.

“I, um, I'm gonna take a shower.”

+

“Hyung.”

Minseok rolled his eyes at Sehun's fourth attempt at gaining his attention, but soon, he jumped slightly at the feeling of a body pressing against his back and two arms hanging on his shoulders. The elder lifted his eyes toward Sehun's face, who was sporting tired eyes and small, common pout he used to get his way with his hyungs.

“What do you want, brat ?”

Sehun grinned at the name, before pouting like the child he was again.

“Cuddle with me please ?”

In the back, Minseok think he heard Jongdae whine about how once again one of the tall guy wanted to cuddle with Minseok, and how no one ever proposes him if he wants cuddle. And maybe, in the back too, Minseok heard Chanyeol and Yifan's chuckling and taking Jongdae – one placing his hands under the smaller's armpits and the second taking his feet – to the sofa, where they did was Jongdae had secretly really wanted : a super duper feel-the-love cuddle session with two of his favorite giants. But all of this was in the back. Minseok closed his eyes and noticed the tension in his body, and maybe it wouldn't hurt.

“Okay.”

+

Soon enough Minseok was thrown on Sehun's bed, under the unmade blanket, while the younger slipped under the cover to press the eldest against him, spooning him. They had reduced their clothes to a loose tank top and his underwear for Minseok, and a hooded sweater for Sehun, letting their legs become a mess where somewhere along the way no one could say which leg was whose. As Sehun put his left arm on top of Minseok's chest, the elder hummed, his eyes closed, just embracing the warmth and comfort there was in the bed.

A few minutes passed, not a word was pronounced between the two, nothing but even breathing, and a change in the way Sehun exhaled air that indicated he was close to being asleep, but other than that, nothing. So when Minseok spoke up, Sehun got startled.

“By the way, Hunnie,” Minseok's voice was sleepy, much like Sehun felt. “Why all those questions today ?”

For once, the younger didn't answer immediately. Actually, it took him a few minutes to answer, so much that Minseok thought he had already fallen asleep, and that he would never have the answer to his question.

“To keep your mind off of things.”

This time, it was Minseok who flinched, startled by the sound as well as the strange answer.

“What do you mean …?”

Sehun moved this time, rolling them around so they would face each other.

“Well, uh...” Was Sehun actually nervous ? His cheeks were adorned with a pale pink, and his eyes kept avoiding Minseok's. “I know you and Jongin had an argument, and that you're not really… uh… feeling well recently. But you never want to talk to me about what you feel, even when I know you're not okay, but I thought I could, like… keep your mind off of things. So you won't think about things that make you feel ty.”

Minseok's mouth fell wide open.

“That's...”

So that was the reason. Sehun had just been worried. Had just wanted to help. And now that he thought about it, it had worked. Through the whole day, Minseok's thought were either occupied with their schedule or figuring out what Sehun's stupid questions were about. Minseok's mouth moved into a grin, remembering the way he had laughed so much earlier, the way it had felt so good. He was just so thankful Sehun had acted the way he did. That he had tried even thought Minseok hadn't given him a reason to, a way to. He had found his own way to help him.

Minseok circled Sehun's waist with his arms, bringing him closer and closer, so much that there was no way air could pass between their two bodies now. He hid his face in the crook of the younger's neck, finding it impossible to suppress his grin – much like a few hours earlier, on the couch, Minseok's cheeks hurt from that smile, a good kind of pain.

“Thank you, Sehunnie.”

The sentence might have been muffled, but Sehun understood completely, smiling that soft smile that made the whole world swoon, and dropped a small peck on Minseok's shoulder.

In a few minutes, they were both asleep.

A/N : Oh my teeth hurt this was so ing fluffy. I was nice to write, I hope you liked it c: . The best thing about this was still the in the back part with chen chanyeol and kris omg i laughed while writing it.

As usual, drop a comment or upvote or something if you liked it, see you next chapter kids ♥ !!