A/N: Double update! Make sure you've read Ch 36 (aka 31(ii)), uploaded Sunday night, before proceeding.

Ch 32(ii) – Two Full Moons Gravitate Together

JUST BEFORE EX’ACT ERA

Jongin hears about it after the company has already made the announcement: he’s supposed to do a “Hats On” fanmeet in Shanghai with Chanyeol, Sehun, and Minseok next month. He immediately looks for Jaehyuk and pulls him aside to talk privately.

“Did you know about this?” he asks, trying to keep his cool.

“No, actually. I wasn’t brought into any meetings about it – it was scheduled by someone else,” the manager replies. “Is there a problem?”

“Gee, I wonder who might have scheduled that. Sending me out of the country. Without Kyungsoo.” Jongin keeps his tone level but ice cold, and understanding dawns on Jaehyuk’s face.

“Oh.”

“Yeah. I thought we had an agreement that we’re supposed to be able to promote together more. Why send me and not Kyungsoo? We never get to do fanmeets together. This is bull. And if VP gets away with it now, he’s just going to continue doing it.” Jongin knows that his rationale is sound when Jaehyuk grimaces and rubs his forehead, absorbing the dancer’s concerns.

“Well, should I arrange a way for you and Kyungsoo to talk to—“

“No, don’t bother Soo… he does so much for me, hyung,” Jongin pleads softly. He looks skyward and gnaws on his bottom lip as he thinks. Turning back to the manager, he speaks more decisively.  “Let me be the point person to deal with the unpleasantries with the VP. When necessary, we'll involve Kyungsoo, of course, but for things like this, I don't want him to have to face that bastard when he already suffered so much from him. Please?” he appeals. “I’m not going to hide anything from him; I just want to be the buffer when it comes to that crooked man, to tackle things like this for us and be the one fighting for our relationship for a change.”

Jaehyuk seems to comprehend the younger’s feelings, maybe even appreciate him for them. With a firm nod, the manager agrees. “Okay. You handled things perfectly with the VP last time, anyway, so I think what you’re saying makes sense. Do you think we need an in-person meeting or would over the phone work?”

“I think a phone call is probably sufficient. But first, talk to me about Soo’s schedule. If the issue is that he can’t go, then I’ll just request to stay home, too, and suggest Jongdae go instead since he’s promoted more in China than me. That seems reasonable, right?” he ventures.

“Yeah, it does actually. Let’s see…” Jaehyuk pulls up D.O and Chen’s schedules on his phone. “No, Kyungsoo doesn’t have any conflicts with that date. Neither does Jongdae, by the way.”

“Okay, then my first plan is to request Kyungsoo to join us for the fanmeet, and if there’s some bs reason why he absolutely can’t go, then I’ll demand to stay behind in Korea with him and have Dae go in my place,” Jongin explains.

“Sounds good,” the manager agrees.

The phone call is surprisingly brief, with Jongin only needing to remind the VP tersely of the agreement they all made that April 1st night in his office and each side needing to ‘hold up their end of the bargain.’ It’s agreed that Kyungsoo will be added to the fanmeet line-up in place of Minseok who might be needed back home to help promote his movie, Seondal, around that time anyway. When they hang up the phone, Jongin grins broadly at Jaehyuk. “Thanks for letting me do that. I’ll mention to Soo how I got him added to the schedule so he’s in the loop, but let’s not make a big deal out of it, okay? I just want him to have one less thing to worry about.”

Jaehyuk nods and ruffles the younger's hair, mumbling to himself as he leaves the room. “You two… you really do take good care of each other…”

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A few weeks later, it’s early May, and they’ve just been informed they’re going to be promoting not one but two title tracks off the album. The first choreography they’re learning is for Monster. They're only five seconds in, and Jongin’s already pissed off. He knows it’s petty, but he can’t help but glare at Sehun every time he looms over his boyfriend, hands placed on Kyungsoo’s lower back and shoulder. ‘Watch where those filthy mitts land. That was too close…’ the green-eyed monster inside him wants to growl at the maknae.

Sehun notices these not-so-subtle scowls and flashes his eyes wide to tell Jongin to cut it out. They’re in the presence of two of their choreography trainers right now. Jongin tries to focus on his coordination with Yixing in front of him, but his eyes keep drifting right, back over to his boyfriend. He practically hisses when they start again and he notices the lanky noodle’s knee bump into Kyungsoo’s on accident.

Sehun rolls his eyes and clears his throat to capture people’s attention. “Um, this isn’t going to work for me.”

The main choreographer shoots him a confused look. “I’m sorry, what?”

“Kyungsoo-hyung’s too short.”

“YAH,” said singer exclaims.

“I can’t comfortably bend in place each time and hit the moves just right because he’s too low down to the ground… or something. Anyway, maybe Jongin and I can trade places?” he suggests in his signature drawl, starting to swap positions with his fellow dancer before even getting the go ahead.

“Works for me,” Jongin says, a little too enthusiastically. “I, uh, prefer stage right anyway.”

Baekhyun takes the opportunity to sneeze “bull” into his elbow, but luckily no one but Minseok reacts with a snort.

“Okay okay, focus guys. Let’s start again,” says Junmyeon smoothly.

The music cues up from the top, and Jongin has to fight the grin threatening to surface. He’s going to get to put his hands all over Kyungsoo every time they perform Monster. It’s almost too good to be true, he thinks as he clutches his boyfriend’s perhaps a bit too eagerly in the opening move, feeling Kyungsoo stare up at him from his crouched position with a mock ‘don’t push it’ look in his eyes. When they shift to the next mechanical pose, the singer lets his fingers graze the inside of Jongin’s thigh, awfully close to his crotch, as a warning that two can play at that game if he’s not careful. Jongin bites his lip and tries to get more into character.

In the next iteration, he channels his inner Kai who wants to claim what’s his and let everyone in the world know it. “VERY good, Kai! I like the intensity- the possessiveness is perfect for the song’s message! That’s the kind of feral emotion we need in this number, guys. Take notes,” praises the choreographer.

Jongdae lets loose a high-pitched, humorous squeal and jumps around to presumably shake it off. “Okay, I can do this. Just needed to get that out first. I’m ready to be, um, feral.”

Later, during a break, Jongin overhears an annoyed Chanyeol whispering to Junmyeon. “Before the showcase, we’re going to need another meeting about subtly in how we distract from Kadi. Amateurs.”

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Most of the members are out at the salon with Jaehyuk getting their haircuts and dye jobs in various shades of the rainbow to prepare for the approaching music video shoots. Thankfully, Kyungsoo doesn’t have to deal with such nonsense given his short, cropped style required by his With God contract for the next year. So he actually has some down time instead. Grabbing his car keys, he takes a leisurely drive toward the edges of Seoul for the small, out of the way grocery store he frequents when he wants to shop in peace. After some deliberation over what to get and a quick call to his mother to make sure his ingredient list is complete, he gathers the staples he needs: zucchini, chili peppers, green onions, carrots, eggs, and doenjang. The dorm is still empty when he gets back, so he sends a quick text to Jaehyuk to figure out how soon they’ll all be returning. The reply text lets him know that he’s got an hour, the perfect amount of time needed to cook in peace. After he starts the rice cooker, he chops the vegetables and boils water, adding in the doenjang to stew. He’s plating it all with finishing touches right as the members barge through the front door with the manager bringing up the rear, dutifully picking up the shoes that didn’t quite make it into the entryway cubby like they were supposed to.

“Ooo, what’d you make, Soo?” Baekhyun inquires, hopping into the kitchen and backhugging him to kiss up to the cook in hopes of winning some food. Kyungsoo rolls his eyes as the other vocalist’s ploy is obvious from the get go; Baek reaches over to lift the lid on the pot of doenjang-jiggae the moment he thinks the chef isn’t looking.

Kyungsoo shooes him out of the kitchen. “Leave the cover on it and step away. This isn’t for you.”

Baekhyun whines. “Let me guess: it’s for Jongin, because you only care about your one and only ever since you’ve gotten the green light to tap that on a daily basis. UGH, so unfair.”

“No,” Kyungsoo replies, surprising all those within earshot. “It’s for Jaehyuk-hyung.”

The manager’s head pops up from alongside the couch where he’d been tidying up a mess of crumbs carelessly left behind from someone’s morning snack. Eyes wide, he points at himself to verify he overheard correctly. “For me?”

Kyungsoo nods and carries the tray over to the dining table before gesturing for Jaehyuk to take a seat. The other members sense the serious, personal atmosphere and quietly abandon the common area to give the two some privacy. As the manager approaches the chair, the singer rubs the back of his neck and shyly says, “I haven’t gotten around to properly thanking you, for all the things you’ve done for me. For all of us really – you’re an amazing manager to us, hyung. You have been since the beginning, and we don’t show our appreciation for you enough. But especially for the last several months, you’ve been almost like a…” the words ‘father-figure’ die on Kyungsoo’s tongue, threatening to evoke tears over the bittersweetness of that label, given the context. “You’ve been a great friend and support to me. This meal isn’t nearly enough to repay you for your kindness, but it was cooked with love and my deepest gratitude.” He bows a full 90 degrees in respect and swallows down the lump in his throat.

When he stands back up, Jaehyuk’s eyes are misty as well. The manager pulls him into a tight embrace. “It’s been my honor to work alongside such admirable young men. And that counts doubly for you, Kyungsoo. Your character is above reproach, and I’m forever proud to be associated with you. That’ll never change.” His words convey a promise that he’s ready to defend them, come what may, and Kyungsoo is so touched that he has to bite his lip to keep his composure. Jaehyuk claps him on the back a few times, as though the forceful pats are needed to reclaim his tougher persona, before releasing him from the hug.

Clearing his throat, the manager rubs his hands together. “So, what’d you make for me?”

“Doenjang-jiggae and fried rice.”

“I’ll eat it well,” he says with a grin, snapping a photo of the carefully prepared meal as a memento before digging in.

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The EX’ACT Showcase is here before they know it. After weeks of preparation and relentless promotions with their V live broadcasts, the group is finally all up on stage, doing the extensive interview with Leeteuk. After lots of banter revealing supposed ‘secrets’ about the other members, things are winding down when D.O is asked directly for some dirt on other members. He passes the buck, giving a snarky “If I open my mouth, you’re all finished” response. But just as they’re moving on, Kai decides to poke fun of him, claiming he’s got good stories on D.O and Sehun.

They go off mic because their host is transitioning to the next segment, but Kyungsoo’s still curious what Jongin was going to say. “Me?” he mouths at the dancer, po