Junho lies down on the kitchen floor, as slowly and silently as he can. Johnny is just a few inches away from him, his eyes closed, looking for all the world as though he’s sleeping and hasn’t noticed his owner’s approach. Junho knows better than that; he’s noticed the millimetric move of his cat’s head, the tail that was still a second ago now rising off the floor as Junho gets nearer. There’s a breathless pause, the moment where Junho hesitates before moving close enough to get the perfect picture: his puckered lips right next to Johnny’s seemingly sleepy face.

Johnny leaps and slides gracefully away just as Junho takes the pic. It doesn’t turn out perfect, not at all. Junho sighs, knowing he could have just snapped a picture while Johnny was resting, undisturbed by his owner. But there will be other chances; Johnny is usually easy to be photographed. His camera and his phone are already full of pictures, more than he will need for the photobook, but he still thinks he can take more, better shots. Especially of Wolie, but she has been harder to approach ever since Junho first started the project, disappearing whenever she spotted the camera in his hands. It is easier to catch her off guard with his phone, which he could keep hidden away in his pocket.

The kitchen floor feels smooth under his back. For a moment, Junho closes his eyes, allowing his body to relax. He can rest tonight, he doesn’t have to do this right now. He should probably be in bed already; lately it has been rare for him to be done with everything work-related before midnight, before the late nights turned into early mornings. But he doesn’t really know what to do with that time to spare.

He starts going through the pictures on his camera, and snorts when he feels the light brush of a tail against his left foot. Johnny is back now that Junho seems distracted by something else. Instead of taking the chance, Junho decides to just let the cat be. So Johnny lays his head on Junho’s ankle and closes his eyes, looking like that right there is the best spot he could possibly sleep on. Junho doesn’t even notice the smile coming before it’s there, shaping his lips with all the fondness he has for Johnny.

“I might join you and fall asleep right here too,” Junho tells his cat, the thought surprising him as it comes out. He finally feels relaxed now that he decided not to take any more pictures. Maybe that’s what he needed, deciding not to do something or anything so that his body would unwind. His eyelids droop; he doesn’t intend to sleep there, but he also doesn’t want to get up just yet.

A few moments of peace go by before the intercom buzzes. Johnny doesn’t leap at the sound, but his tail is up, his eyes slitted as though he were slightly annoyed at the disruption. Junho smiles at him, scratches behind his ears as he moves to go downstairs, wondering who that could be. He finds his phone on the way, a bunch of missed calls and texts from--

“Taecyeon hyung?” he answers the intercom, still holding the phone with his left hand.

“Hey, let me up!” Taecyeon says. His cheerful voice and disregard for timing shouldn’t surprise Junho, but he frowns slightly before shrugging.

Junho’s going through the messages while he waits for Taecyeon in the hall where he kept his in-use shoes. There are a lot of Okcat emojis in between questions about whether Taecyeon could come over and what he should bring and how come Junho didn’t have his phone glued to his hands for once. Junho’s shaking his head, the corner of his mouth lifting up despite the fact that he’s slightly annoyed Taecyeon decided to just show up out of the blue.

Two knocks at the door before Junho opens it. Taecyeon’s carrying too many things, including a thermo box, so Junho helps him with that as he lets him in. “What is all this?” he asks, his curiosity surpassing everything else.

Taecyeon’s got one of his charming grins on as he leaves the bags near the couch, looking at Junho as if the latter were part of a giant scheme. A giant’s scheme. “Hyung’s come to take care of you.”

Junho splutters. He laughs briefly, but Taecyeon’s grin doesn’t falter, nor does the seriousness in his sparkling eyes. He looks and sounds like he’s joking, but he’s not. That’s exactly what worries Junho. Even though he dreads the answer, he asks, “What do you mean by that?”

“I’ve heard you’re having trouble sleeping,” he starts, and that alone has Junho setting into a frown, because someone’s tongue got loose. Taecyeon’s grin falters a little when he notices the way Junho’s looking at him, but he still goes on, “I was actually waiting for you to come over to my place, since you’ve been to everyone else’s, but--” he lifts his hands up in a brief shrug to finish a sentence that doesn’t need to be explained.

Junho did have some difficulty adapting to the new place during the first few months, though he hadn’t thought about it like that. He had been glad to have his own space, to be able to have as many cats as he wanted without people like Taecyeon complaining about what the giant deemed as devils--when they were actually little angels, they were Junho’s babies. He could have some quiet and privacy after years of dealing with the opposite every day. But he had missed his bandmates, and what he had wished for sometimes became a problem. Especially late at night, when everything was silent and he didn’t have anyone to talk to about his day. There was no Minjun to invade his personal space or disrupt his sleep with music, no Nichkhun nor Wooyoung to complain about his mess, no Chansung to invite him for a late night snack, no Taecyeon to make him laugh with his unstoppable sense of humor. He hadn’t had all that even before he moved out; it had been just him, Nichkhun and Chansung in the dorm for a couple of years, but he had never felt this lonely before. But now, what bothers him the most is that he had been willing to admit that loneliness out loud instead of keeping it to himself like he ought to. He should have known Nichkhun would eventually tell Taecyeon, out of worry if nothing else.

“You live with your parents,” Junho says, his annoyance coming back now that the curiosity had revealed something he didn’t like. “I didn’t want to impose on them.”

“Oh come on,” Taecyeon makes a dismissive gesture, his features smoothing into an amused smile at that explanation. “My mom loves you. She’d be glad to have you.”

Junho sighs. He doesn’t want to have this conversation; he’s not in the mood to argue with Taecyeon of all people. So he decides he won’t. “Why didn’t you bring Eddie with you?” he asks instead, motioning for Taecyeon to follow him upstairs. Junho hears a meow just before he spots Johnny on top of the stairs.

“I was afraid your cats might try to kill him,” Taecyeon says. It sounds so natural for him to say that, Junho seethes and turns around abruptly, almost making Taecyeon bump into him.

“Say anything else about my cats and I’ll kick you out.”

Taecyeon looks like he’s about to make a joke, but he bites it back and simply looks at Junho’s heated neck, his eyes crinkling at the edges. One deep, slow breath and Junho is able to shake it off and smile.

“Look at you, though. Could barely stand being around other animals and now you’re all overprotective of your baby.”

Taecyeon gapes at that. “First of all, he’s not my baby, I’m not being overprotective, and what do you mean by other animals?”

Junho lets his smirk show, a small curve of the lips that doesn’t even come close to how he feels about having turned Taecyeon’s words against him. “Aren’t we all?”

It takes half a second for Taecyeon to laugh but he does, though it’s that moment of pause that commits itself to Junho’s memory, the dumbfounded look on Taecyeon’s face. Junho takes Johnny up in his arms as they reach the top of the stairs, and Taecyeon shakes his head at him, though he looks diverted.

“You’re not gonna try and make me hold him like that, right?”

“Sounds like you want to.” Junho takes one step closer to Taecyeon, who stands his ground instead of moving back. “Ohhh,” he teases, pretending to be impressed.

“Where’s the other one?” Taecyeon asks, turning around in a full circle as his eyes search for the other devil incarnate.

“Wolie? She doesn’t mingle with the lesser ones,” Junho says, knowing he’s pushing it. Although Taecyeon hardly ever pulls the hyung card, he still is his hyung, and he’s also much bigger than him, though Junho has been working out a lot too. But this is how they’ve always been, one trying to get under the other’s skin, and that is another thing Junho is willing to admit he misses, if only to himself.

Taecyeon just scoffs. “I suppose you’re trying to make me leave, but it won’t be that easy.” He winks at Junho, moving into the kitchen to put the thermo box on the counter. Junho lets his cat on the floor and sits on a stool opposite Taecyeon, who’s spreading ingredients and tupperware with cooked food on the counter. He looks too comfortable as he puts the tupperware in the fridge before Junho has a chance to check what’s inside, but the remaining ingredients also hold his attention.

“Are you gonna cook for me?”

“For us, yes, you selfish prick.” Taecyeon moves back just before Junho could hit him. “So, where do you keep your apron? I’ll also need a skillet, and if you don’t mind helping, you could cut this tofu and the green onions while I prepare the rest.”

Junho doesn’t say that Taecyeon should do all that since he decided to come here in the first place; he’d like to think of himself as a good host after all. Therefore, he helps Taecyeon find the things he needs, and attends to his assigned tasks. He also wonders what exactly they’re making, but wondering about it is fun and he knows that’s the kind of thing Taecyeon gets on.

Junho works on one side of the sink next to the stove, watching as Taecyeon heats up some vegetable oil, chili powder and beef that had been grounded previously. He adds soy bean paste and stirs for a short while before he asks Junho to pour in water while he continues stirring. Junho has an idea of what this is now; a simple recipe that he should remember to use on nights he feels too tense to go to bed. After Taecyeon seasons the stew with salt and pepper, he motions for Junho to add the tofu, which doesn’t take long to cook.

“Do you have any eggs?” Taecyeon asks after turning the stove off. Junho is so distracted by the smells and the warmth around them he doesn’t hear it right at first. He laughs at himself, and at Taecyeon’s questioning look before opening the fridge and asking how many eggs they need.

The soft tofu stew is finished with one egg gently broken into it, some sesame seeds and the green onions. It’s a simple version of the stew, but Junho feels grateful that Taecyeon would want to make that for him, even though he’s still unsettled by Taecyeon’s self-invitation to sleep over.

“What’s in all those bags you left downstairs?” he asks as they sit at the counter to eat. Junho hums after a few spoonfuls of the stew; it’s thick and hot and full of flavor.

“Despite how much you think I hate your cats, I brought some gifts for them,” Taecyeon says.

Junho puts his spoon down to stare at him. “Really?”

The charming grin is back, as is the look of pride that Taecyeon had managed to surprise him in more ways than one. Junho huffs, which only makes Taecyeon laugh, all smug. “I also brought you one Okcat pillow, which I beg you not to throw in the trash at least for tonight because I’ll need it.”

Junho chuckles despite himself. “I have some spare pillows you could use. They’re certainly more comfortable than that thing.”

“That thing happens to work just fine.”

“Oh, does it now?” Junho feels his ears coloring even as he says that, though he can’t help but laugh along with Taecyeon. “It won’t be too comfortable though, you’ll have to sleep on the couch.”

“Hey, the idea of a sleepover is for us to share a room.”

Junho raises one eyebrow at him. “You know that’s not happening.”

“Why not?” Taecyeon looks genuinely disappointed. “You put up with Khun’s somnambulism, what’s worse than that?”

“Sharing a bed with you, of course,” Junho says, a dry laugh escaping him. “Khunnie still talks in his sleep, but he doesn’t take up the space of a whole king size bed like some people.”

“Are you calling me fat?” Taecyeon lifts up his t-shirt as if he needed to see his own abs to be reassured.

Junho rolls his eyes. “No, you simply take up too much space. You look like some stupid starfish when you’re sleeping.”

“I’m hurt,” Taecyeon clutches at his own chest. “I’ve always assumed I’d look like a sleeping princess.” He bats his eyelashes, his face contorted with fake sadness, leaning towards Junho as if to beg him to take his words back.

Junho shoves his face away, and almost makes him fall off the stool by accident. Taecyeon makes a number of overdramatic noises before settling back on the stool, which he moves a little away from Junho, bringing his plate with him. Junho shrugs, thankful that he might enjoy his stew undisturbed for a while.

Wolie finally shows up when they’re downstairs, preparing the couch for Taecyeon to sleep on it. Junho spread some blankets over it to make it more comfortable. He’s also given Taecyeon one of his spare pillows despite the fact that the other insisted on using the Okcat one, which he placed on one corner of the couch.

“Wol-ah,” Junho crouches down slowly, hoping she will continue her way to him. The cat stops though, her eyes on Taecyeon, her tail down, but it goes up slowly as she approaches the visitor. Junho can hardly believe it, but she rubs her face around Taecyeon’s ankles, the giant himself displaying his disbelief while he stands very still lest Wolie decides she doesn’t like him after all. But Wolie emits a soft meow and retreats, going after Johnny, who’s lying down next to the small houses the cats rarely slept in.

“What just happened?” Taecyeon sounds as surprised as Junho feels.

“I guess you just earned your right to be here,” Junho says, adding as an afterthought, “or maybe I should still kick you out for bewitching one of my babies like that.”

Taecyeon laughs out loud. “Well, aren’t you jealous?”

Junho throws the Okcat pillow at him.

“You wanna start something?” Taecyeon takes one step towards him, so Junho reaches for the pillow Taecyeon had said he wouldn’t use. He’s chuckling despite the threatening look that Taecyeon’s mustering up, or rather because of that. “You’re one bad dongsaeng,” Taecyeon says, his eyes piercing at Junho’s so that the latter isn’t ready for the jerking move that takes away the pillow and almost takes him off balance too. “Steady,” Taecyeon whispers as he holds him still, his hands light and warm on Junho’s shoulders.

Junho pokes hard at his chest and Taecyeon recoils, grumbling bad words before reaching for Junho’s arm and pulling him so that he could tickle his stomach. Junho tries to kick himself free, but his body betrays him and he has to squirm and laugh instead, rendered vulnerable to Taecyeon’s trick.

“Let me go,” he pleads in between desperate giggles, but if anything Taecyeon only gets more determined to break him.

“Apologize to your hyung first.”

“Apologize for what!” Junho’s voice rises at the last word, his question turned into a loud protest. He attempts to push Taecyeon away but finds himself on the floor instead, as if his body had melted into a puddle, and Taecyeon is right there, still tickling him relentlessly.

“For not reaching out to me like you used to.”

Junho stills at that, his confusion surfacing as he looks at Taecyeon to try and make sure he got that right. He hears his own erratic breath while he collects his thoughts, Taecyeon’s gaze intent on his own, devoid of any and all barriers. Junho recalls late night talks, his barefeet dragging him to Taecyeon’s bed, demanding for his help. It was Nichkhun’s sleep talking in Thai once, Chansung snoring too loud another time, Wooyoung and Minjun discussing music while listening to songs through the night, worry about an upcoming comeback and whether the fans would still be waiting for them after all.

“You moved out,” he mumbles, swallowing as he hears his own words, seeing how Taecyeon takes them. “I learned to find other ways.”

Taecyeon nods, acknowledging that but not necessarily accepting it. “I’m still here, though.”

Junho finds it hard to answer to that, the unspoken implications, the promise of something he would like to count on but he’s not sure he can. “I know. It’s not that bad, having you around.”

Taecyeon’s chuckle is brief, but his eyes let Junho know he gets it, and they might be okay now. Taecyeon offers him a hand as he gets up and Junho takes it, allowing Taecyeon that simple gesture of helping him be on his feet, trusting him not to ruin it for once.

Junho coughs, feeling suddenly awkward. “Are you ready for bed?”

“Your bed?”

Junho just looks pointedly at him.

“Oh, you mean this lovely couch that will certainly not screw up my back? Of course.”

“You're the one who showed up without notice, so I couldn’t even be prepared--”

“Simmer down, okay? I’m just kidding.”

Junho lets out an exasperated sigh. “Good night, Taec.”

“Are you sure your cats are not gonna try something while I sleep?”

Junho doesn’t turn around from the way to his bedroom as he replies, “They probably want to stay as far away from you as possible. ‘Night.”

He hears Taecyeon’s own long-suffering sigh before he closes the door.

Next morning, Junho wakes up to realize he had barely lay down before falling into a peaceful slumber. He stretches in bed before getting up, checking the time as he leaves the bedroom. Taecyeon must still be asleep.

As Junho opens the door, he’s greeted with the sight of Taecyeon all sprawled on his living room couch, Wolie seemingly asleep on the armrest right next to Taecyeon’s head. Johnny’s curled up into a ball on the floor, close to the other two. Junho bites back a chuckle and moves as silently as he can, glad he’s got his phone in hand to take several pictures. He won’t use them for the photobook, but he wants to capture the moment anyway, to digest one thought that comes and stays.

If Taecyeon was able to sleep with two dangerous beasts around him, maybe Junho could bear one in his own bed.