(( Hello hello~ I hope this update finds all of you well :3 I'm boring and don't have much to say xD so I guess on with the update~ ))
 

"Junmyeon!" the brunet cringed as his voice was called, a pathetic groan escaping him as his head dropped to the desk. He didn't ask for this, he wanted it to stop! According to his father, his mother never had this problem, she was able to draw people to her only if she chose to, and a year and a half later Junmyeon had long grown tired of being chased around.

"Maybe if you picked one of them, the rest would stop flocking to you," Kyuhyun suggested, patting the others back. "And the day is almost over, so you'll be able to go hide in your room or something soon," he added, offering a smile to the others irritated expression, and Junmyeon heaved a sigh, pressing his face into the desk as much as he could.

Kyuhyun was at least right about the day being over soon, as the bell rang less than ten minutes later, and Junmyeon pushed his chair back, sliding the strap of his bag over his shoulder. The two walked through the school, both trying to ignore other students calling out to Junmyeon here and there, the brunet looking over at his friend when Kyuhyun held out his arm to stop him. Junmyeon looked up, groaning again at the trio that was waiting for him out by the front gate. Not only were they the first three to confess to him, each of the three seemed to lose their shyness over the near two years, and Junmyeon knew what to expect when they were together. Kyuhyun looked over at him, half sympathetic and half trying not to laugh.

"Time to see how fast you can run, huh Junmyeon?" he offered just as the oldest girl took a couple steps towards the two of them. Junmyeon took a step back, trying to quickly route the quickest escape he could before he turned and started running, the three girls not far behind him.

Around a corner here, down an ally way there, Junmyeon was starting to find himself in a part of town that he was unfamiliar with, which made finding a hiding place all the more difficult. So when he looped around a corner and found the door to one of the shops to his immediate left he ducked in, grabbing the bell that hung from the door to silence it as he shut the door and knelt below the window.

"Ya, I thought I saw him turn this way." Junmyeon forced himself to take slow, silent breaths despite his body wanting him to start panting to restore the amount of oxygen he had used to run.

"Maybe you saw it wrong and he turned the other way?"

"I'm sure he came down this way!"

"Maybe we were too slow, and he got down to one of those stores," he heard the youngest suggest before their footsteps started again, fading out.

Junmyeon counted to ten before he stood, opening the door and peeking out to see if they were really gone when he felt someone standing behind him. He looked to his left, flinching at how close the other's face was to his own and he straightened the rest of the way, stuttering on his words as the other pulled back. Junmyeon opened his mouth, his voice catching as he noticed the contents of the store for the first time; dust covered mirrors, wardrobes that looked completely handmade, tables covered in knickknacks that seemed ancient. He looked back at the door, taking a moment to read the mirrored letters before realizing that he had chosen to hide in an antique shop. And antiques were expensive, to say the least.

"Oh my god, I'm so sorry! I wasn't thinking when I turned around the corner, I took the first door that I could, I hope I didn't break anything, if I did I promise I'll pay for it, I'm really sorry!" Junmyeon stammered the rush of words as fast as he could, stopping only when the dark brown haired male placed a hand on his shoulder.

"I'm going to need you to slow down, I can't understand you," the other stated, Junmyeon noticing his words slurring a little before he nodded, bowing his head.

"I'm really sorry that I barged in, I was trying to-" he stopped again when he felt a hand on his chin, nudging him to look up.

"I'm also going to need you to look at me when you talk," the other added, Junmyeon straightening and trying for a third time.

"I'm sorry if I imposed on your store, I was trying to... Hide from someone," he explained, watching as someone stepped out from a doorway behind the register. He watched the older male stop beside the dark haired male, who turned his focus to him as the older's hands started to move to make shapes and gestures with his hands. He started moving his hands in response, and the other nodded before Junmyeon tapped the younger's shoulder, catching his attention.

"Is your..." he trailed off, not knowing what the relation between the two was, and catching the kitten like curl of the other's lips.

"He's my dad." Junmyeon nodded, looking at the older for a moment before back to the other.

"Is your dad deaf?" he asked, noticing the confusion that flickered in the other’s eyes before he shook his head.

"No, I'm the deaf one. Dad just tends to sign to me since it make it easier for me," he replied and Junmyeon stared at him for a long moment.

"How... Do you know what I'm saying? And how can you talk?" he asked and the other shook his head, looking like he was covering the urge to roll his eyes with a smile.

"Jongdae was eight when he became deaf, so he learned a lot of speech before then. Though I’m sure you noticed he sounds a little different than most." Junmyeon looked to the others father, noticing the way his hands moved as he spoke. "He's spent the last several years doing his best to learn lip reading, but even then it can be hard since less than 40% of language is expressed through lip movement. It’s easier when people speak directly to him and are slower when they speak, but like he said, I tend to sign to him to make it easier for him to understand what I’m saying for sure."

Junmyeon stared at the two, feeling his face growing warm as he processed the last few minutes. Had he really just barged into someone’s shop and questioned how one of the workers was able to communicate verbally even though he was deaf. He internally groaned before bowing his head in apology for a long moment before standing and looking to Jongdae long enough to apologize before he turned and hurried out of the antique shop.

A few days later he found himself running down a somewhat familiar street, and when he rounded the corner he recognized the antique shop door and ducked inside. The trio hadn’t thought to look for him in there the last time, maybe he would run into the same luck this time? He sat down in front of the door with his back to it as he tried to catch his breath, noticing what he thought was a flicker of light through one of the gaps on the shelf, and a few moments later Jongdae came around the shelf, giving him a curious look before he smiled.

“Couldn’t stay away?” the other teased, and Junmyeon huffed a sigh, tensing when he heard a voice outside the door.

“Hey, since when did we get an antique shop around here?”

“You’re seriously only noticing it now? It’s been around since we were little kids.”

“Since we can’t seem to find where Junmyeon went, why not check in there? Maybe we’ll find something nice to give him.” Junmyeon looked up at the door with wide eyes, the burning in his throat making him realize he was holding his breath before he saw a hand reach over his head, turning the ‘open’ sign around to read ‘closed’.

“Look at the sigh, dummy. They’re closed, we can’t go in.”

“What? But I swore it just said it was open!”

“We must have gotten here right at closing time. Come on, we’ll come back this weekend or something.” Their footsteps started up again, quickly fading out and Junmyeon looked up at Jongdae, who looked down at him, his lips pulling back up into the smile they seemed to have fallen from.

“Were those the people you were hiding from last time?” Junmyeon sighed and closed his eyes, nodding and running a hand through his hair. When he opened his eyes again, Jongdae was squatting down in front of him, watching his face closely.

“Th-thanks,” Junmyeon said, wincing a little before looking down at his hands and holding them up in front of his chest. “How do you… sign thank you?” he asked slowly, Jongdae’s smile starting to fall a little and Junmyeon noticed the surprise that flickered in the brunet’s eyes before his smile grew and he sat crisscross in front of Junmyeon.  He lifted one hand, his palm facing his face as he touched his chin with the tips of his middle three fingers, then lowered his hand a few inched towards Junmyeon. Junmyeon watched him, mimicking the action and Jongdae nodded.

“Now you know your first sign,” he stated before standing back up and offering his hand to Junmyeon. “Since you’re here, why don’t I show you around?” he offered as he helped the light brown haired male to his feet. They wandered around the shop, Jongdae explaining things about different items here and there, and Junmyeon looked to him when he heard the other’s voice crack, watching Jongdae’s hand come up to rub his throat. The other looked to his after a moment, his face scrunched up as if he was trying to hide a wince with a smile.

“S-sorry, I haven’t… talked this much since shortly after… I lost my hearing,” he admitted his voice squeaking and going faint as he spoke. Junmyeon frowned a little when the other pointed to something else and tried to speak again, seeing the cringe Jongdae gave before he pulled out his mobile. He typed a few words into a blank message, and tapped Jongdae’s shoulder, holding his mobile to the other.

How about we talk like this? Give your voice a rest, and I don’t mind. It’ll be easier for you, right?

Jongdae looked at the message before taking the mobile and responding.

Thanks.
 

>Are you going to make another grand entrance today?
 

Junmyeon cracked a small smile at the text, picking his bag up off of his chair and sliding it over his shoulder.

>Won’t know until I get to the front gate of my school.

>Are you ever going to tell me why you always pop in, running from adoring fans?

>Are you some idol I don’t know about?
 

Junmyeon shook his head, starting to reply when he noticed Kyuhyun leaning over to look over his shoulder at his mobile.

“What’s got you in such a smiling mood?” he asked, Junmyeon turning his mobile away so that the other couldn’t see his message line with Jongdae.

“Nothing, just my dad asking me to pick up something he forgot at the store. I’m amused because he said it was the thing he went to the store for in the first place,” Junmyeon said, shoving his mobile into his pocket. “I should hurry so I miss those girls and don't have to be chased to the store,” he added, giving a quick wave before hurrying from the classroom.

>I'm so bored. We should go somewhere.

Junmyeon turned his attention from his text book to his mobile and then up to Jongdae.

“Where?” he asked.

>Somewhere fun and cool

Junmyeon shook his head at the second message, cracking a small smile.

“That's so very descriptive,” he stated, rolling his eyes to convey sarcasm. The older was expecting a shrug from the dark haired male, not for Jongdae to push his textbook off of his lap and take him by the hand to pull him to his feet.

Over the last few weeks of hiding at the antique shop he had grown accustomed to the way Jongdae would manhandle him from time to time if he wasn't able to express what he wanted - though Junmyeon often wondered if he could and he just wasn't patient enough to wait for Junmyeon to piece together what he meant when Jongdae struggled with verbal or written words and Junmyeon hadn't learned enough signs to understand yet. So it wasn't the most surprising thing for Jongdae to drag him out of the shop, yet this time Junmyeon found himself staring down at their hands while waiting for the crosswalk sign to signal it was safe to walk across the road, noticing that Jongdae had intertwined their fingers when taking ahold of his hand rather than his arm or wrist.

He looked back up at the other’s face, noticing that the other was either oblivious to the fact, or didn’t care as he dragged Junmyeon across the street. They walked close to ten blocks before Junmyeon could feel vibrations filling the air and the longer they walked the louder the music that followed became and Junmyeon was quick to connect the vibrations as the bass from the speakers at the all ages club Jongdae pulled him into. The older caught the amused look that the guard at the door had, positive that it was in response to the confused look he knew was on his own face, and he instinctively tightened his hold on Jongdae’s hand as the crowd thickened around him for a few moments. Once it cleared Jongdae lead the way over to the bar, only then looking down at their hands before meeting Junmyeon’s gaze long enough to give him a curious glance. The younger then pulled out his mobile, turning the screen to Junmyeon after he typed out a message.

> When did you start holding my hand?

Junmyeon’s jaw dropped at the question, taking the mobile when Jongdae offered it to him, and released the other’s hand to reply.

> /You’re/ the one who took /my/ hand when you decided it wasn’t study time anymore.

Jongdae looked at the response, his lips coming to a faint pout before he shrugged and slid his mobile back into his pocket and turned to face the crowd that surrounded the stage of the club while Junmyeon continued to stare at him in disbelief. He watched the other close his eyes, leaning back against the counter of the bar and Junmyeon glanced at the stage before back to the dark haired male’s face, reaching out to tap on his shoulder once he typed out a message on his mobile.

>Is there a reason we’re at a club? I’m not trying to seem ignorant, I’m just really confused.

Jongdae’s kitten curls played across his lips, easing the nervous tension in Junmyeon’s shoulders as he took the mobile and typed out his reply, Junmyeon sitting on one of the bar stools beside the other, leaning over to watch the message appear on the screen.

>The bass is always cranked up at these places, so I can enjoy the music by being able to feel the vibrations in the air. I can’t crank up the volume at the house when my dad is around, and he hasn’t gone on any trips to pick up new antiques in a while.

Jongdae turned the screen towards Junmyeon a little more, waiting for the older to nod before he erased the message and began to type again.

>It doesn’t bother you, does it? Some people that I’ve talked to online suggested it to me a few years ago, since it was a way to spend time in a place where even they couldn’t hear what was being said. But then there are some others who wouldn’t want to come because the bass vibrations hurt their ears.

Junmyeon’s eyebrows knitted together a little at the message before he shook his head and took his mobile when it was offered back to him.

>No! It doesn’t bother me at all, I was just wondering. I’m used to some vibrations because of the way that the auditorium is during choir performances.

Jongdae’s eyes widened a little and he shifted closer to Junmyeon as he took the other’s mobile, seeming almost impatient as he replied.

>You’re in choir?

Junmyeon looked up to meet his gaze, nodding once as he pulled his lower lip between his teeth to nibble on it shyly, Jongdae not bothering to erase the words before he was typing again. Junmyeon cracked a small smile at the red underlining on several words as the other kept misspelling what he was trying to say in his excitement, noticing the movement of his shoulders when he would huff sighs of irritation.

>When are your performances? What about practices?  Can people who aren’t in choir come to practices? Is it through your classes or is it outside of school or like a club thing? Do you like it?

Junmyeon was chuckling to himself as Jongdae continued to rattle off questions, finally handing him his mobile back for him to reply.

>Our next performance is in two weeks, and practice is three times a week in the morning. I think people are allowed to come to our performances, but I would have to ask my choir instructor to be sure. It’s part of my class schedule at school since my first year of high school, so I would say that I enjoy it.

Jongdae had taken a seat while Junmyeon replied, shifting so close to the brunet that he was leaning over with his chest against Junmyeon’s shoulder and arm; the older was pretty sure that if he tried to move away, it would send Jongdae to the floor as he seemed to be placing all of his balanced weight against Junmyeon.

 

“Junmyeon, someone’s staring at you through the window.”

“Kyuhyun, did you hit your head and forget the last two years? That’s nothing new.”

“Well, this one doesn’t look like he’s drooling and ready to jump you.”

Junmyeon blinked before he looked up from his sheet music to look at his friend before following the other’s gaze to the main entrance of the choir room. His eyes widened as his heart skipped a beat when he saw the face pressed up against the glass of the window in the door, and he stood from his chair - knocking it over in the process - hurrying over to the door. Jongdae almost fell face first onto the floor as if he hadn’t expected the door to open, and he stumbled a little before looking up at Junmyeon excitedly.

“Found you,” the dark haired male said with a laugh, Junmyeon’s hand coming up to rub the front of his face before he shook his head and lowered his hand, tapping Jongdae’s shoulder when the younger started looking around the choir room to catch his attention again.

[What are you doing here?]

Jongdae’s excited expression fell a little as he watched the older’s hands move.

“You said your teacher was okay with people visiting.”

[Yes, but] Junmyeon’s hands stopped, going through what he signs he had learned and internally cursing the fact that he had no clue how to sign what he was trying to say. He looked to the door to the teacher’s office as it opened behind Jongdae and the younger followed his attention to the dark red haired female who stepped out of the office.

“You’re the teacher, right?” Jongdae asked as he turned to face her, and before Junmyeon could speak up. She responded with a smile before she nodded, Junmyeon’s jaw hanging open a little when she started to sign to Jongdae. The two went back and forth faster than Junmyeon was able to keep up with, and eventually Solji turned her smile to Junmyeon, then the rest of the class.

“This is Jongdae, a friend of Junmyeon’s. He would like to sit in on some of our practice sessions, as long as that’s alright with everyone. I wasn’t expecting him to join us the first session after Junmyeon spoke with me, but I think that shows just how excited he is to experience your talent,” she said, her hands continuing to move as she spoke and Junmyeon assumed it was her translating for Jongdae. Junmyeon watched Solji lead Jongdae around the classroom, most of the other students going back to their work, jumping when he heard Kyuhyun behind him.

“So who's your friend? This is the first time I've heard anything about you having a new friend.” Junmyeon fought back a wince with an attempt at a smile, turning back to face the other.

“I met him a little over a month ago when I was running from some girls,” he replied, notocomg that kyuhyun’s attention had moved to watching the two walk around the room.

“Ms. Solji’s… Signing?”

“I was surprised by that too. I mean, I told her that Jongdae’s deaf, but-”

“Wait, he's deaf?” Kyuhyun cut in, his focus snapping back to Junmyeon who nodded. “But he was talking to you, if he's deaf then how…” Junmyeon noticed a twinge of irritation that faded when he remembered he had been guilty of saying pretty much the same thing after meeting the younger, now understanding the tired look Jongdae had that day.

“He can read lips a lot of the time, and he wasn't born deaf so he learned to speak when he was little,” Junmyeon said, unsure if it was his place or not to explain Jongdae’s situation. When Solji lead the younger back to where Junmyeon and Kyuhyun were, the brunet relaxed a little at the excited expression that had returned to Jongdae’s face.

[This is my friend Kyuhyun] Junmyeon signed, Jongdae turning his attention to the other.

“Hi, I'm Jongdae,” he greeted, holding his hand out to Kyuhyun. When the other just stared at him for a long moment, Junmyeon jabbed his elbow into his side, snapping Kyuhyun out of whatever it was that had him staring at Jongdae. Kyuhyun looked to Junmyeon before reaching out to shake Jongdae’s hand, and Junmyeon hoped that the dark haired male was oblivious to the hesitancy in Kyuhyun’s movements.

“Everyone please take your seats, I want everyone trying their best now that we have a guest,” Solji called to the class, waving for Jongdae to follow her up to the front of the classroom. She took one of the unused chars, moving it to rest in front of the piano, Jongdae adjusting it a little until he seemed to find the spot he deemed best while Solji situated herself at the piano. Junmyeon made sure to focus on his posture the best he could, though his eyes kept flickering to Jongdae, and he felt his cheeks growing warmer and warmer as the younger’s eyes never seemed to leave him. He had long since grown used to people doing that, but something about Jongdae doing it made his heart try to leap into his throat.