“So, you slept with your cute neighbor and—“

“No, Jiyong, no. We were literally sleeping, stop waggling your eyebrows about the whole thing.” Youngbae finishes on a mutter. He’s terribly hungover and leaning against the counter in his kitchen.

“You can’t even see me, how do you know what I’m doing with my eyebrows.” Jiyong says from the other end of the line, and Youngbae lets out a deep sigh.

“Because I know you.” He mutters, forcing his eyes open so that he can grab his coffee.

Jiyong laughs for a moment, it’s light and uncaring, and then it trails off. “Alright, so maybe I was. But your neighbor is cute, and you didn’t deny that, so I’m not wholly unjustified.”

Youngbae sighs again, shuffling away from the counter with his coffee as he does so. He sits down on his couch and tries to be comfortable. “Whatever.”

“Whatever?” Jiyong repeats, and the tone is a little too chipper for Youngbae’s ears. “Whatever? Youngbae, you haven’t even slept at my place since your break up. This is pretty huge news.”

“I feel like you’re exaggerating, but I can see you’re trying to make a point, so I won’t argue.” Youngbae grumbles, and Jiyong (as he always does) pretends that Youngbae hasn’t spoken.

“But the point really is that Seunghyun and I were right and you owe me an apology for hanging up on me last night.” He says quickly, or maybe it’s his normal rate of speaking, but Youngbae’s head is pounding so he can’t really decide.

“Why do you think you’re right when all that you know of this story is that I got drunk at my neighbor’s after I fell off the roof?” Youngbae says grumpily.

“Because you’re my best friend and I’m always right.” Jiyong says, and Youngbae sighs even more deeply than previously. “Okay, so how did you get out of there this morning? You didn’t sneak out, did you?”

Youngbae shakes his head, remembers that Jiyong can’t see that, and clears his throat. “No, I rolled off the couch and onto the floor and we both woke up.” He starts, and Jiyong lets out a short chuckle. “And then I said I needed to shower and brush my teeth and he stumbled away to do the same and now…”

“And now here we are.” Jiyong finishes for him. “This is better than it could have been. Thank God he was also hungover or your stuttering bashfulness might have put him off of you.”

Youngbae splutters indignantly at that. “I’m not stutteringly bashful.” He exclaims, and Jiyong makes a clucking sound.

“Now, now, don’t want to upset yourself.” He says chidingly, and Youngbae considers driving over to Jiyong’s house to punch him. “But seriously, Youngbae. This is good for you.”

Youngbae closes his eyes and nods. They talk pleasantly after that, and soon he’s off the phone and his headache has lessened enough that he can consider doing something productive: like fixing his lights.

~

Seungri exits the shower feeling like a new man. His head hurts like hell, but if he remembers correctly, then he really isn’t surprised by that. What he is surprised by is the amount of attraction he feels toward his neighbor.

He grabs some medicine for his head and sits down with a mug of tea at the bar. It’s no longer snowing, which he’s pretty thrilled to note, but it looks cold and boring outside and he can’t make himself want to go out. His phone rings, and for the first time in quite a while, he’s not sure he wants to answer it.

“Hello?”

“Hey! It’s Daesung!”

Seungri rolls his eyes and leans back. “Hey, what are you up to?” He asks, trying to sound like he definitely isn’t hungover.

“Just checking up on you, making sure you didn’t burn your building down trying to cook something fancy to eat.” Daesung says with a laugh.

Seungri scoffs. “As if I would attempt cooking something complicated.” He says, leaning back and looking at his fingernails. “It’s very not classy.” He adds, and he can almost feel Daesung rolls his eyes on the other end.

“Alright, well, I’m heading to the gym now, did you want to join me?”

Seungri considers the offer for a moment, but then he catches sight of movement out on the front lawn, and abandons all pretense. “Nah, I’m going to stay in today, I did a lot of work last night.” He says, a yawn forming as he finishes the sentence.

“Okay! No problem, Ri. See you Monday?”

“Absolutely.” He replies, before quickly hanging up the phone and rushing to the entryway. He shoves his feet into his boots, and goes to jerk on his jacket, before he tells himself to calm down. He takes a deep breath, and slowly resumes putting on the jacket; he couldn’t go out there looking flushed and over-eager! That would most definitely not be classy.

He shoves his hands into his pockets as he leaves the building and very carefully picks his way across the snowy front yard to where Youngbae is standing. He stands there for a couple of seconds, wondering if Youngbae had noticed him or not, before he gets impatient.

“So, contemplating finishing this insanity?” He asks, and Youngbae barely even flinches, which makes Seungri feel a little put out ‘cause maybe he was ignoring him.

Youngbae tilts his head to the side and then back up straight before shaking his head. “No, I was thinking that the lights would look better lower down, you know, closer to the ground.” He turns slightly toward Seungri, who doesn’t seem to understand what he’s trying to say.

“If you put them lower, they will go across your windows.” He says, his mouth curling in disgust. Youngbae chuckles and pulls him closer so that they are standing next to each other.

“I meant that they would look better hanging over your apartment, but if you’d rather I try to hang them up above…” He trails off and returns his gaze to the building. Seungri stares at him for a couple moments, before he pulls himself back together.

“No, they should stay on your half of the building. Too many colors.” He says as haughtily as he can manage. He manages to startle a laugh out of Youngbae, who throws him a grin after a short moment.

“Alright, I’ll finish putting up the lights the way I’d originally intended, then.” He says, and Seungri nods.

“Good, I can’t imagine what kind of damage colored lights would do to my reputation.” He sniffs, and Youngbae shakes his head and throws an arm around Seungri’s shoulders.

Seungri is surprised by the gesture, and finds himself having to lean to the side in order to indulge the shorter man. “Alright, let’s get you out of the cold, your highness, and I’ll get back to my decorating.” Youngbae says with a smile, and Seungri fights the urge to pout.

He’s soon inside with his tablet and a mug of cocoa. He sits himself in front of the front window and lets out a deep breath. For some reason he feels like he will be supremely uncomfortable all afternoon until he knows that Youngbae hasn’t propelled himself off the edge of the roof again.

It’s quarter past four when there is a knock on the door, and Seungri puts down his tablet gently, deciding to take his time. He strolls over and pulls it open, hoping that it is Youngbae, but not quite expecting it to be.

“Since you’re so knowledgeable about such things, I figured I’d ask you to come and assess the lights.” Youngbae says the moment the door opens. Seungri is slightly taken aback, as Youngbae is very casually leaning against the doorframe in a way that he would like to call alluring but would also like to ignore.

“Hmm, I suppose I can inspect your handiwork.” He manages to say, grabbing his coat quickly before brushing past Youngbae and outside.

If he’d looked back at all and seen the light laugh dancing around Youngbae’s face, he doesn’t mention it, and they’re soon standing in the front yard, side by side.

“Well?” Youngbae asks, and Seungri indulges his own ego a bit and decides that the older man sounds a bit worried.

“Hmmm,” He taps his chin with his forefinger while crossing an arm over his chest. He sees Youngbae’s eyes fall into slits from the corner of his own and he suppresses a smile. “I think they’re perfect.” He says, a tone of finality in his voice, and Youngbae lets out a surprised chuckle.

“I’m glad they’ve passed.” He murmurs, and Seungri in a cold breath through his nose and keeps his eyes away: Youngbae is a dangerous kind of attractive.

He’s back in his apartment, awaiting the arrival of his dinner, when he lets himself think about Youngbae again. The older man had been picked up by a friend only a few minutes after Seungri had approved the decorations, and so Seungri had had to go back inside alone. He isn’t upset about this though…he hadn’t really expected to have dinner with Youngbae or anything…

Despite being shorter, Youngbae was far more muscular and broad than Seungri could ever claim to be. He isn’t normally a big fan of introspection or thinking about his feelings, he’s much more into taking life as it comes and saying what’s on his mind, but there is something about Youngbae that makes him want to ponder. He hasn’t had this urge to over-analyze since he was in high school, but he can’t seem to stop.

Youngbae has a handsome face that is well-sculpted, and a short mohawk. His eyes sparkle when he laughs, and his arms are toned, strong, and beautiful. Seungri closes his eyes and leans his head back so that it is resting on the back of his chair, memories from the night before were rolling across his mind.

The older man was a good dancer with far more humility than Seungri had ever seen on anyone, ever. He moved with precision, but you could tell that Youngbae lost himself in the music he was dancing to. It is beautiful and painful to watch Youngbae dance, Seungri decides, because Youngbae is flawless and gorgeous and definitely just out of reach.

Youngbae was so not Seungri’s type.

He’s too nice, and earnest, and hard-working. Seungri always went for the pretty, but vacant, ones; they were easier to control. Seungri needed control…he wanted control…

But his relationships were always short-lived.

Youngbae is hung up on his ex-girlfriend, why would you even have a chance? Seungri’s mind is spinning and he sits up forcefully, his eyes snapping open. This is why he doesn’t do introspection. This is why he doesn’t date people he actually truly likes.

He shakes his head and considers pacing, but is saved from such a plebian act by the sound of his doorbell and his food.

~

“So, that was him, wasn’t it?” Jiyong asks, his hands only gently holding the steering wheel. Youngbae hates it when Jiyong drives.

“Yes.” He says simply, and Jiyong hums in approval. “Where are we going?” he asks, hoping to both distract Jiyong and find out what is happening.

“I want Chinese tonight.” Jiyong says, tapping his fingers on the steering wheel as they come to a stop light. “He looked cute. Is he taller than you?” Jiyong asks after a few moments, turning on the blinker and entering the parking lot for his favorite Chinese restaurant.

Youngbae clenches his teeth and then rolls his eyes: distracting Jiyong is impossible. “Yes, he is.”

“Cute? Or taller?” Jiyong asks with a grin as they get out of the car. Youngbae considers punching him, but he’s out of the car first, so Youngbae doesn’t get the chance.

“You didn’t ask me if he was cute.” He points out after catching up, and Jiyong shrugs as he pushes open the door.

“It was implied.” Jiyong responds. They’re seated immediately, and Jiyong pulls his menu toward himself, and starts to skim. Youngbae takes this as a sign that he is off the hook for the moment. He’s wrong. “So, he’s cute, taller, and obviously makes enough money to live in an apartment by himself…” Jiyong starts, and Youngbae audibly groans.

“Ji, really?” He asks, and Jiyong smiles. He looks up from his menu to make eye-contact, and shrugs.

“Yes, really. I want to know.”

Youngbae sighs and runs a hand over his face. “Okay, he’s cute, he’s younger, he’s taller, he’s a dancer.”

“Two of those things were already established.” Jiyong says, his eyes back on his menu as he traces a finger down the selections. “Try again.”

They’re interrupted by their waiter, but Jiyong orders for them both and sooner than Youngbae feels is necessary, all of the focus is back on him.

“Well?”

Youngbae sighs and leans forward on the table, his hands covering his face as he collects his thoughts. “What do you really want me to say, Jiyong?” He asks after a moment, and he hears Ji shift in his seat, probably crossing his legs.

“That I was right.” He says, and Youngbae looks up in time to catch the light shrug and small pout Jiyong affects.

He sighs and shakes his head, leaning back in his seat. “What, exactly, are you so sure you were right about?” He crosses his arms after asking, and Jiyong thanks the waiter when he brings them their drinks.

“We’ve already established that you’re over…her.” He says, twirling the straw in his drink. Youngbae rolls his eyes.

“You liked her.” He accuses, and Jiyong puts a hand to his chest as if he’s been wounded.

“Of course I did! Until she left you like a rotten sack of potatoes!” He responds.

Youngbae scoffs, but can’t stop a small smile from working its way onto his face. “Okay, yes. I’m over her. It’s been a long time coming.”

“But it’s here now?” Jiyong asks, a smile screwing up the corner of his lips. “Listen, I don’t mean to be so pushy…”

“Yes you do, but continue.” Youngbae interrupts, and Jiyong rolls his eyes.

“Yes, well…I’m just looking out for you.”

“What if I don’t like guys?”

Jiyong actually laughs out loud at that, and Youngbae wonders if he should feel offended. “Sorry, it’s just that,” he pauses here to catch his breath before starting again. “It’s just that it’s so cute that you would even think to say that.”

“Ji.” He says, a note of pleading in his voice.

“Yes, sorry. But really, it doesn’t matter if you think you like guys or not. This ‘Seungri’ kid seems cute, and from the very little that you’ve told me…well, he seems your type entirely.”

Youngbae scoffs at that, but has to refrain from answering for a moment as their dishes arrive. “What, exactly, is my type?” He asks, spearing some chicken on his fork and fixing Jiyong with a look.

Jiyong lets out a world weary sigh and shrugs. “I dunno…tall, artistic…”

Youngbae gives him a flat look. “Those are two very broad traits, Ji, they do not a ‘type’ make.”

“Hm,” Ji says, “Maybe I should meet him to be sure.”

“Why?” Youngbae asks, feeling just a little alarmed and surprisingly not okay with Jiyong meeting Seungri just now.

A self-satisfied smirk floats its way across Jiyong’s face. “Because you like him.” He says, leaning forward. Youngbae controls his face and raises an eyebrow.

“It’s been one day.” He says, and Jiyong shrugs as he leans back again. “Wait until there is something worth interrogating him over.”

Jiyong lets out a rather indelicate snort, and the topic shifts away from Youngbae’s love life.