“I hate you…” Jongup grimaced, fumbling around with the long green skirt he was forced to wear for a certain childhood friend and boss. 

“It’s the last one, Jongup. Do you think I like the idea of flirting and being all lovey dovey with you in drag?” Daehyun faked gagged at the thought, adjusting his tie. “You didn’t even shave your legs…” Daehyun shook his head in dismay. 

Jongup did not make for a very good fake fiancee, but at least it got those potential brides off his back. Though Daehyun would have visually preferred seeing Jongup in a nice tailored suit with his well-toned muscles deliciously accentuated for him to enjoy, that would lead to consequence that he did not want to deal with at the moment. Making them believe that he was interested in more...burlier women made sure the rumor mill wasn’t churning. In any other circumstances he wouldn’t give a damn what those bimbos thought about him banging boys or girls, but if he wanted to win the board members over he had to be practically a model citizen. Meaning no parties, no clubs, no y triste….well publicly anyways. Anything is fair game behind closed doors. 

“I wore lipstick. You’re lucky I did that instead of shoving it up your …” Jongup growled, the two of them entering the restaurant. The host doing a double take upon seeing Jongup. No matter how much makeup Jongup threw on his face there was no way to hide his sharp chiseled features and jawline. And the makeup around his eyes merely emphasized their sharpness and yness. Daehyun wholeheartedly agreed that Jongup made a y man, but a horrid looking woman. 

“. I didn’t know you were into that, Guppie. You better pray I don’t tell Zelo, he seems to be vanilla to me.” Daehyun snickered, but quickly shut up when he felt a swift kick to the shin.

“Keep talking and next time I’ll aim higher…” Jongup whispered growled as they approached the table where a young woman clad in a bright red dress sat. Her acrylic nails tapping against the table impatiently. 

“You must be Ms. Kim.” Daehyun sat himself, opening a chair for Jongup like the gentlemen he was. 

“Oh and you must be Daehyun! You can just call me Jimin. You are more handsome than your picture leads on,” A flirtatious grin spread across her satin red lips until she saw Jongup. Her face then contorting to that of revolt and confusion. “And who is this?”

“My fiancee.” Daehyun flashed a bright smile, wrapping his arm around Jongup’s shoulder. Jongup forcing a smile as if he had wires pulling at the ends of his lips.

“Excuse me?” She looked appalled and furious. “You must be joking with me,” She let out a small chuckle. “Seriously?”

“I am serious. I love my little Jongsukkie the most, right dear?” Daehyun gripped tightly on Jongup’s shoulder, feeling his partner’s reluctance to continue the charade.

“Of course, Daehyunnie.” Jongup forced the words out of his mouth with the highest pitch of voice he could possibly conjure. 

“I know the little game you’re playing, Daehyun,” She glared at him. “You think you can scare me away with your ugly fake girlfriend of yours?” She flipped her hair and arrogant scoff leaving her lips. Honestly, in any other situation, Daehyun would probably sleep with her in a instant. She was soft on the eyes and the curves on her body were just screaming to be touched. But there were two issues with that idea. One she was his father’s unknowing pawn. And two. She was a . To Jongsukkie. 

“She is real, I can assure.” Daehyun’s annoyance began to outweigh his acting chops. She was the last one of the pack. The final boss. And damn did he just simply want to be done and not deal with his father’s nuisances.

“Hah! I am obviously prettier than that she-beast so there is no way in hell that you would choose her over me. My daddy told me all about you Daehyun and don’t think you can mess with me like those other girls.” Daehyun was gritting his teeth. How he wish he could simply tell her to f**k off and then end the night with a nice with some pretty little thing at the club. But he couldn’t.

“I am madly in love with my fiancee and if my words don’t prove it.” Daehyun knew he was going to regret this later, but what the hey, he needed to get spoiled brat off his back, plus the idea of kissing Jongup wasn’t too appalling. 

Hence the crashing of the lips. Daehyun immediately swooped in and placed his lips against Jongup’s who immediately froze. Not registering what happened. Daehyun kept the kiss as PG as possible till he glanced over quickly to find that Jimin simply sat there, jaw wide open in shock. Daehyun guessed he had to up the anty to shock her into leaving. Daehyun forced his tongue into Jongup’s mouth, causing the other boy to react, clutching Daehyun’s head to removed his lips from his. From the outside, it looked as though the two were in a hot French kiss. On the inside, it was a war between Jongup and Daehyun. 

“Uhg! I can’t believe this!!” Jimin rose furiously and threw her napkin on the table, stomping out the restaurant. Once she finally left, Daehyun glanced over to make sure the coast was clear before removing his lips. 

“That f**kin took for-” Daehyun’s words were cut off by a swift fist to the eyeball. Fist being Jongup’s and eyeball being his. “The f**k, Guppie!?”

“Never do that again,” Jongup gave him the most deadliest stare Daehyun had ever seen. And he has seen Jongup’s expression when someone tried to hit on Zelo. He thought it couldn’t get scarier…..it did. Jongup quickly downed a glass of water, swirling the liquid in his mouth before spitting it back into the cup. “I’m going to go home and rinse my mouth with bleach.” Jongup growled, wiping off his smeared lipstick with the back of his hand before stomping out of the restaurant.

Daehyun just sat their slightly dumbfounded with his hand covering his injured eye. Yeah, he owed Jongup a basket of nesquik and unreleased anime. He let out a sigh, knowing that his eye was going to look like a grape the next few days. 

“Tough day buddy, two in one go…Even the ugly one left you...” The waiter patted Daehyun’s shoulder sympathetically before serving him a glass of wine, complimentary of the restaurant.

“Ffffff*******k.” Daehyun groaned, walking down the hallway back to his office. He knew his black eye was still visible, the makeup helping but the discoloration obviously present. He knew cause his clients were gawking at his left eye as if he was damn pirate with an eyepatch. Fortunately for him the meeting went well, awkward, but well. Now he simply debated whether to go on the rest of the day looking like he had soot over one eye or go home and take a nap. The latter sounding very appealing.  

“Hello brother.” Now the thought of heading home and taking nap sounded REALLY appealing. Woojin approached Daehyun, his smug arrogant demeanor hidden behind that polite fake smile that his half-brother seemed to have mastered. 

“What are you doing here?” Daehyun growled, extremely tired from dealing with business deals and cleaning up after his father’s matchmaking attempts. Not to mention that his panda eye hurt like hell. 

“I was simply taking a tour of the company and I just happened to see my beloved brother walking by and wanted to say hi,” Woojin grinned, enjoying the frustration and annoyance that was so evident on Daehyun’s face. “It seems that all your marriage choices have cancelled. Did you happen to receive that black eye of yours from one of your candidates? What a shame.”

“That smug grin of your says otherwise,” Daehyun scoffed. “You’re probably enjoying this aren’t you.” Daehyun would have glared at Woojin harderer if it weren’t for his injured eye. Honestly he deserved it for forcing a kiss on Jongup, but it seems the stares and dealing with Woojin should be more than enough to repay his debt.

“Why would you say that?” Woojin kept that plastic Ken smile on his, leaning in closer so that only Daehyun could hear his words. “I completely enjoy watching you cornered like a rat. And I can’t wait to see the expression you’ll make when I take away the company you’ve worked so hard for right in front of your eyes.”

“You f**king peice of-”

“Daehyun?” The two men paused their silent yet not so silent feud to direct their attention to the voice calling Daehyun out. 

Youngjae stared at the two men a bit confused. Himchan had told him to give Daehyun the monthly update report since he had to go down to the finance department about a lab budget issues. He did not recognize the man that looked similar to Daehyun, but he knew for sure that the man and Daehyun were not on good terms based on the grimaced glued to Daehyun’s face. The man was extremely handsome, almost as much as Daehyun, but while Daehyun was handsome and y in a devilish manner, this man was handsome and elegant in a clean-cut manner. A man that would be totally in Daehyun’s ballfield, so for Daehyun to have such a horrid expression of disgust towards him only solidified the thought in Youngjae’s mind that Daehyun did not like this man one bit. He could choke on the tension within the air.

“Youngjae, did you need something from me?” Daehyun let out a tense breath and relaxed his shoulders a bit. He didn’t know why, but the sight of the chipmunk did ease his anger a bit. Perhaps seeing a familiar friendlier face (Though hidden by dishevelled hair and glasses) soothed his anxiety in comparison to seeing his horrid brother. 

“Yeah, Himchan wanted me to hand these papers to you,” Youngjae awkwardly approached the two, handing Daehyun the papers. Not before making unwanted eye contact with Woojin. “Um and you are…” Youngjae knew deep down that he should have kept his dang mouth shut and sprinted the hell out of there as soon as he handed Daehyun the papers. But he did not want to be rude...not until he actually got to know the stranger.

“I’m Jung Woojin. The Co-CEO.” Woojin gave Youngjae and amicable professional smile. He was fascinated by Youngjae’s sudden appearance, particular how it affected Daehyun. He knew his half-brother enough that he knew his habits. Daehyun pays little to no attention to those who do not fall within his standards. And Youngjae was not in his standards.

“I’m Yoo Youngjae. A post-doc in one of the research lab of the pharmaceuticals department.” Youngjae attempted to extend his hand to politely shake Woojin’s hand to only have it impeded by Daehyun. 

“Thanks for the paper, Youngjae. You can leave now.” Daehyun’s voice was cold and rigid, his eyes never leaving Woojin’s. Woojin cocked an eyebrow. Now this was getting more interesting. 

“Uh okay…” Youngjae looked at the two boys awkwardly before heading back to the lab. He felt as if he had walked through a minefield made of eggshells and by some heavenly miracle he survived. 

“A friend of yours, Daehyun?” A smug grin spread across Woojin’s face.

“No. He is just an employee.” Daehyun growled, knowing what Woojin was up to. Youngjae was not a part of Daehyun’s f**ked family. None of his friends were so like hell he would allow Woojin to screw around with them. 

“Employee? You don’t usually remember the names of your employees unless they are pretty to look at. Like that old lover of yours, his name was Himchan wasn’t it? Is he still working here as a head researcher?” The more Daehyun got angry and agitated the more Woojin thrived. He fed of this anger and hatred. All the years he suffered was worth it as long as he could return that suffering back at Daehyun with full force. 

“You know what, you ask too many damn irrelevant questions. If you want to know about my love life or my employees, Google it. I don’t have to deal with you or your snake of a mother.” Daehyun snarled, pushing pass Woojin and continued off to his office. Woojin’s grin merely grew wider at a thought. He found something to push Daehyun’s buttons. And that button went by the name of Yoo Youngjae. 

Youngjae jumped when he suddenly felt someone slump in the seat next to him, nearly dropping the sample he was observing on the microscope. “F**k you scared me!” Youngjae scolded, but his voice immediately softened when he saw a exhausted and upset wolf puppy beside him. 

“I am so damn tired…” Daehyun groaned resting his chin on the counter of the work bench. Which was probably not that sanitary, but at the moment he gave no s. Youngjae let out a small sigh and placed the sample aside, turning his attention to Daehyun. 

“That was your half-brother I assume.” Youngjae rested his chin in his hand, watching as Daehyun’s expression turn from exhaustion to hatred. 

“Let’s not talk about that prick. I swear, first I have to deal with my father messing with my love life then I have to deal with Woojin trying to take my company. Can’t they just all f**k off?” Daehyun groaned, rubbing his temples as he felt a migraine coming on.   

“Your brother seems nice.” Youngjae playfully shrugged, slightly amused at the dumbfounded ‘what the hell’ face Daehyun was pulling. 

“You can’t be serious. I will end our friendship immediately, chipmunk, if you’re not joking.” Daehyun looked Youngjae dead in the eye. He was too emotionally and physically spent to even mess around at the moment. 

“Pfft, of course I’m joking. I’m not blind. I can tell that there was something off with your brother,” Youngjae rolled his eyes. “That fake smile of his freaked me the hell out. I’ve seen Ken dolls with more sincere smile than his.” Youngjae shivered at the memory. He immediately read through Woojin’s facade. He could see the hidden vendetta the other man held. He knew those smiles from the ones he received when people he thought were friends found out he was gay. 

“You played with Ken dolls?” An amused smile spread across Daehyun’s face. He knew talking to his favorite chipmunk would make him feel better. Youngjae had this way of making him smile or chuckle with his witty and sassy banter. He would usually and moan to Jongup, but his lovely secretary seemed to be helping Zelo with some sort of paperwork. And what kind of friend would he be to -block his friend. 

“No I played with GI Joes cause he had ier abs.” Youngjae playfully rolled his eyes.

“I have y abs too so does that make me more of a GI Joe or a Ken doll?”  Daehyun smirked, raising an eyebrow.

“Pfft, you are a total Ken doll, pretty boy.” Youngjae chuckled, finding this conversation ridiculous, but nonetheless entertaining. 

“Then you’re a furby.” Daehyun snickered, causing the other boy to pout and punch him lightly in the arm. 

“Yah! You , at least I gave you a Ken doll.” Youngjae pouted, not liking the comparison to a fluffy monster thing that was more creepy than cute. 

“What? I think they’re cute. Very fluffy,” Daehyun chuckled, poking Youngjae’s cheek. Youngjae sneered, jokingly attempting to bite Daehyun’s finger off when he noticed slight discoloration on Daehyun’s eye. 

“Pfft, did one of those pretty girls or boys finally clock you?” Youngjae chuckled and lightly wiping off a small part of the makeup, showing Daehyun’s bruised eye.

“If you count Jongup in drag.” Daehyun hissed due to the pain despite Youngjae’s light touches. Youngjae apologized, immediately removing his hand and instead letting out a small giggle imagining the manly secretary in a dress with makeup.

“I’m not even going to ask.” Youngjae tried to stifle his laughter, knowing that the only reason Daehyun would involve Jongup was because it had to do with his family. 

“Yeah, I don’t want to traumatize you with the image of Jongup’s hairy legs in a skirt.” Daehyun shuddered before the two boys burst out into a fit of laughter. 

“Okay, one eyed panda wait here for a sec.” Daehyun watched curiously as Youngjae got up from his workbench and scurried off to the back of the lab. 

Daehyun could say wholeheartedly that he did not expect to find himself so close with Youngjae. The two of them were so different yet so alike. A nerd and a prince. Who would have thought the two would be such good friends, confidants. Despite his wealth and charm he didn’t have many friends. Only those who wanted to sleep with him (which he had no qualms with) or those after his money and status. But the chipmunk was different. He didn’t want to sleep with him (with reasons still unknown to Daehyun) and he didn’t care about his money or his status. He was friends with Daehyun for Daehyun. And with Daehyun’s horrid first impression he was surprised that Youngjae even wanted to be friends with him in the first place.

“Here, you can vent your anger and make yourself an ice pack.” Youngjae smiled at him. Daehyun noted how cute and chubby Youngjae’s cheeks became when he smiled. He wondered why he didn’t notice this before. It was a nice feature that he had to pay attention to more often. 

Daehyun took the small ziplock bag filled with ice and eyed it curiously. “And what am I supposed to smash the ice with?”

“This,” Youngjae handed Daehyun a thick book with a dark pink cover on it. Daehyun furrowed his eyebrows in confusion, seeing as the book had no title on it. “It’s Himchan’s dissertation.” 

“Uh, wouldn’t he mind that I was using it to smash ice?” Daehyun raised a brow, but an amused smile spread on his lips. 

“Yeah, but you're his boss so as long as you don’t tell him I gave it to you, we’re good.” Youngjae chuckled as he took the seat besides Daehyun. 

“Well aren’t you a naughty chipmunk.” Daehyun chuckled as Youngjae shrugged in reply. Let’s just say that Daehyun smashed the ice nearly to death as he grumbled about his father’s attempts to make him ‘normal’ and at his brother’s arrogance, and how dumb the entire situation was. On a brighter note, he got a great ice pack. 

“Wow, from all that ranting I think you should see a therapist instead of smashing ice.” Youngjae smiled, helping Daehyun adjust the ice pack over his eye. He had just heard his boss basically spew out curses at his family like he was chanting some spell. But hey who was he to judge. He would do the exact same thing if his family was as screwed up as Daehyun's. But he’d probably use voodoo dolls instead of ice.

“Going to a therapist would bring shame to the Jung family,” Daehyun mocked, imagining what his father would say if he attempted to show any form of weakness. “But that was cathartic,” Daehyun hissed feeling the sudden coldness on his injured eye. “So chipmunk…”

“Hm?” Youngjae tilted his head curiously, at the same time removing the ice pack every now and then to gently pat Daehyun’s eye with a kimwipe to remove the water. Having water get into his already injured eye was like stepping on a lego twice. Not pleasant.

Daehyun could feel a smile grow on his face as Youngjae cared for him. Even if Youngjae would deny it, he had some motherly tendencies like a certain fox named Kim Himchan. Like mother like son perhaps? Either way, the closer Daehyun got to the little chipmunk the more at ease he felt. It had been a while since he ever felt comfortable with someone, let alone someone he initially didn’t care for. Felt like someone actually cared for him and his well-being. Not his bank account. Life and fate was really an interesting thing. 

“Are you free this weekend? This time it’s my turn to take you around town, and I’m going to force you to buy more than just a sweatshirt.” A playful smile spread across Daehyun’s face. 

Youngjae wanted to say yes. Despite Daehyun’s sometimes arrogant behavior, Youngjae had grown fond of him and enjoyed his company. Problem was that he was suppose to play cupid for Himchan and Yongguk this weekend (he felt less guilty now for using Himchan’s dissertation as a hammer). Though Youngjae would never publicly admit it, talking to Daehyun brought a form of comfort for him. The two respected each other's privacy yet were always there for each other if the other was feeling ty. He honestly thought he would never be friends with someone like Daehyun. Arrogant. A player. An asshat at times. But fate had a way with things doesn’t it.

“Sorry, I would, but I have other plans…” Youngjae almost regretted his words when he saw Daehyun's smile transform into a pout. Who allowed Daehyun to be cute and handsome at the same time? There had to be a law against that. Youngjae realized that the more he hanged out with Daehyun the more he found that the man was more cute than y 90% of the time. Of course this was Youngjae ‘objectively’ speaking, nothing to do with the matters with his own heart. At least, that is what he told himself.

”Himchan hyung better buy us food after this,” Zelo grumbled as he placed the earpiece into his ear. Him and Youngjae standing outside the entrance of the art festival, waiting for Himchan and Yongguk to arrive. “But hey Youngjae hyung, you clean up well! No wonder Himchan hyung wanted you to dress up like a frog all the time. If you showed up to work looking like this, CEO Jung would definitely jump you.” 

“He’d try and then I’d kick him where the sun don’t shine and then he’d say goodbye to his little Daehyuns.” Youngjae scoffed, placing his earpiece in.

Youngjae had to admit he was glad to be out of those hideous clothes he was forced to wear. Now he looked like a decent human instead of a potato sack. His hair was nicely combed up and to the side, the glasses were long gone so his now sultry yet cute doe eyes can be seen, and his ear peircings were properly shown. A nice simple dark blue short sleeved button up that was tucked into his well fitted gray jeans adorned his lean, muscular frame. Basically Youngjae looked like a fine peice of . 

“Eek! Look hyung they’re here!” Zelo shrieked, new to the whole spying on his umma/boss and his date.

“Shhhhh, Zelo! Not so loud!” Youngjae scolded, placing a hand over the boy's mouth as the two followed Himchan and Yongguk from a distance.

“So have you been to these before, Himchan?” Yongguk smiled at Himchan politely, causing the other boy’s heart to do flips. 

“Of course I have! Been to these things aaaallll the time.” Himchan lied through his teeth. The only time he went to a art festival was for his niece's birthday party and he was pretty sure that all they did was fingerpaint.

“That’s great to hear! I thought I would bore you by bringing you here.” Yongguk chuckled. God, how Himchan was addicted to this man’s smile and laugh. He hated how those simple acts had such an affect on him. 

“No way! You could never bore me!” Himchan stared a bit wide eyed at his last words. He really wanted to slap inner Himchan and ask what the hell was going on. Who told him to word vomit. 

Yongguk cocked a brow curiously. He couldn’t lie that seeing the usual confident, sly Himchan get all flustered was not entertaining. It was actually quite cute in his opinion. “You too. Being with you is always fun.” He gently gripped Himchan’s hand and took him into the festival, as Himchan gawked at him. Bang Yongguk was holding his hand. Him and Bang Yongguk were having physical contact. 

“Stop gawking like a baboon and talk to him.” Himchan could hear Youngjae through his earpiece with Zelo snickering in the background.

“Who are you calling a baboon?” Himchan quietly snarled, but apparently not quietly enough.

“Um I don’t think they have baboons here, Himchan…” Yongguk looked at Himchan a bit confused, but an amused smile was still on his face. Youngjae and Zelo laughing their asses off through the earpiece. If Himchan wasn’t such a devoted mother he would strangle the life out of his two children….

“Don’t you think this painting is nice? I like how the artist portrays the conflict of emotions and society’s will in the mind of our youth,” Yongguk stared at the image sparkly eyed, absorbing the image in front of him. Himchan attempted to see what Yongguk what seeing, but in all honesty the painting looked like someone threw up colors on a piece of canvas. “What do you think?”

“Uh well…” Himchan’s eyes were trembling. What could he say? Oh yes, Yongguk, the color splotches definitely represent the conflict of a hormonal teenager. 

“I really appreciate how the colors represent the different emotions that our youth struggles under the pressure of society’s expectations. I have to say that this painting really highlights the era of surrealism.” Himchan repeated Youngjae’s verbatim. He had to say that he was proud of his acting chops cause he honestly had no clue what the hell he was saying. But the sparkle in Yongguk’s eyes made his little act all worth it. 

“Himchan hyung is whipped.” Zelo chuckled. The giant puppy and chipmunk were hiding behind the other panel wall, watching the cute couple chit chat and laugh. 

“I heard that, Zelo.” Himchan growled on the other line, causing Zelo to quickly cover his mouth to make sure no other words exited. The last thing he wanted was a naggy Himchan. 

“Sigh, I don’t know how much more of this I can handle…” Youngjae rubbed his temples. This was the eighth painting they looked at and Youngjae had to pull information out his and somehow regurgitate it to Himchan. Thank God that Zelo was with him because the giant puppy basically became his handy dandy encyclopedia. Well….he could use google while Youngjae told Himchan what to say. 

Youngjae had to admit though. Yongguk was some guy to make Himchan go through all this. He remembered how back in highschool he would always admire how Himchan was so nonchalant about the boys he was dating. Being able to ace his college courses and score some of the hottest guys on campus. Himchan didn’t need to do a thing. The boys flocked to him. But Yongguk was different. He made Himchan work for it, and Himchan was willing. Maybe it was because Yongguk didn’t treat Himchan like some pretty face that they just wanted to bang. He took Himchan on dates, treated him with care, attentive to him. Youngjae was glad that his best friend was able to find him that treasured him so much. He was a bit jealous himself since he didn’t have someone like that. 

“It’s okay hyung, just a few more hours and lunch will come.” Zelo patted Youngjae’s back in sympathy. The crowds were starting to get to the both of them since they were being pushed and shoved. People were beginning to stare at them suspiciously since the were trying to hide from Yongguk’s eyes. Zelo was surprised that they hadn’t been hauled out by security yet. 

“The things we do for Himchan,” Youngjae playfully rolled his eyes, but slowly followed the couple as they moved. This time the couple stopped in front of an impressionist painting. “Okay Zelo, time to consult with professor Wikipedia,” Youngjae eyed the couple as Zelo typed away on his smart phone trying to pull up some college level words that Youngjae could spew out. Youngjae was about to open his mouth to tell him some information that good ol professor Wikipedia provided when he noticed something he wished he didn’t. “!”

“What’s going on???” Himchan whispered on the other line. Luckily Yongguk was too busy staring at the painting to notice Himchan’s panic. 

“It’s Daehyun.” Youngjae paled as he saw Daehyun and Jongup walking down the aisle, chitchatting about something. Millions of thoughts ran through his mind. Like why wasn’t he a ninja so that he could smoke bomb the hell out of here. 

“What?! Why is he here!?” Youngjae could hear the panic in Himchan’s voice skyrocket. Youngjae attempted to soothe Himchan’s panic even though he couldn’t hide his own. 

“Huh? Zelo?” Jongup smiled at the sight of the giant puppy, waving slightly. Youngjae ducked and hid in the crowd before Daehyun turned to look at their direction. Gosh damn, the giant puppy’s height. 

“Uh hi Jongup hyung, CEO Jung…What are you guys doing here?” Zelo waved awkwardly, side glancing at Youngjae who was squatting down beside him. Zelo knew better and stepped in front of Youngjae as said man was crawling away. He owed the tall boy ice cream later for this. 

“Thinking about buying something nice to give to a client as a thank you. But Zelo, I didn’t think you were the artsy type.” Daehyun grinned, placing his arm around the tall boy. The taller boy awkwardly chuckled, glancing to see that Youngjae had successfully made his escape. 

“Did you come here alone?” Jongup smiled at Zelo while removing Daehyun’s arm from Zelo’s shoulder. 

“No I came here with Youngjae-” Zelo immediately placed his hand over his mouth. Dang Jongup and his angelic like smile. It’s like impossible to tell a lie to him….that and it didn’t help that Zelo maybe, kinda, might have a crush on the guard dog. 

“Youngjae’s here?” Daehyun’s ears perked up at the sound of the chipmunk’s name. So this was the reason he couldn’t hang out with him. He was hanging out with Zelo...just the two of them. Daehyun’s brows furrowed. For some reason that didn’t sit well with Daehyun. Maybe he had indigestion. He knew he shouldn’t have had that fourth slice of cheesecake.

“Uh….” Zelo hoped that Youngjae got away far enough that he wouldn’t get caught. He didn’t.

“Youngjae? Is that you?” Daehyun noticed a tuft of disheveled hair that was crawling across the floor. Youngjae’s nicely combed hair now a mess from all the crawling and hiding. 

“Uhhhh no?” Youngjae sprint crawled away as fast as his legs could carry him.

“Yah! Youngjae!” Daehyun sprinted after the chipmunk. He was now peeved. Why was the chipmunk running away from him!? 

Jongup and Zelo stared wide-eyed, watching this cat and mouse chase occur in front of them. Jongup was surprised. He had never. Ever seen Daehyun chase after someone. It was usually the other way around. Jongup couldn’t help but smile at the sight. That Youngjae sure was something to make Daehyun of all people sprint. Jongup turned to Zelo and gently tugged on the tall boy’s arm. 

“Want to walk around?” Jongup nodded with head in the direction of the the rest of the festival.

“S-sure!” Zelo shouted with enthusiasm, forgetting about his mission to get Himchan laid. He would have to apologize to Himchan later, but having alone time with Jongup was worth it. 

“YOUNGJAE!” Daehyun was growing impatient and frustrated. 

“F**k, f**k, f**k!” Youngjae repeated the words like a mantra. He had to hide. He had to find a costume. He had to do something because Daehyun was catching up fast! He knew he shouldn’t have ditched gym class back in highschool. 

His eyes grew wide when he noticed something that could possible save his . A costume rack for the small plays that are performed at the festival. Youngjae thanked God as he quickly hid himself in there. His pupils trembled as he scanned through the costumes. He needed something to hide his face, not just his clothes. It could be anything. Hell he would wear an ’s head if need be. He just needed a mask. He should have been careful for what he asked for. 

“Yo! Chipmunk why did you run-” Daehyun caught up to Youngjae and grabbed said boy by the arm, only to stare at him stunned. Instead of finding chipmunk Youngjae….he found chipmunk Youngjae in a chipmunk costume. “Why…” Daehyun stared at him with a blank expression. 

“I am getting in touch with my inner spirit animal.” Daehyun could almost see Youngjae’s signature eye roll behind the hideous mask. Yep, that was his chipmunk alright. 

“Riiiight,” Daehyun didn’t want to dwell on why Youngjae was dressed up like a chipmunk….even though he wasn’t a few minutes ago. Youngjae wouldn’t answer his questions anyway. “So why are you here? Having a fun date with Zelo?” Daehyun quirked a brow. 

“Now, more like helping Himchan with his own date,” Youngjae scoffed. “Speaking of-” Youngjae began to walk off to find Yongguk and Himchan. 

“Ah-ah, you’re not ditching me after rejecting me and making me chase after you.” Daehyun chuckled as Youngjae’s chipmunk head faced him. Nope, he wasn’t going to let his chipmunk run away again. 

“Wow look at that!” Zelo’s eyes gleamed as he saw a group of dancers performing. He was always fascinated by the craft and secretly choreographed some dances himself. He wasn’t that great yet, but he was improving. He hoped that he could perform one day once he was better. 

“You like dancing?” Jongup quirked a brow, entertained by the giant puppy’s starry eyed gaze.

“Hehe yeah, it’s like my hobby. I’m not too good yet, but I hope I can get better so I can perform like these guys.” Zelo stared at the performers with such admiration that Jongup felt a twinge of jealousy. He wanted to impress the young boy. He wasn’t that talkative or charismatic like Daehyun. Actually he was 100% upside awkward turtle, while Zelo was so bright and vibrant. 

“Do you mind holding this for me?” Jongup handed Zelo his jacket, revealing the black tank top he wore under. His biceps (or cheetos) for everyone to see, or in Zelo’s case, drool over. 

Jongup approached the group of performers asking if he could join for a bit. The group accepted him with bright smiles and allowed Jongup to take the stage. And boy did he take it. He popped, locked, and b-boyed like no tomorrow and every movement was so sharp and fluid that Zelo’s jaw basically dropped. He didn’t know how, but Zelo just kept falling more and more in love with the man. Jongup was so handsome, so smart, and he could dance. He felt so small despite his giant size. He was still so young, just a intern, and he for sure did not have his life together. 

“You are so amazing!!” Zelo shouted with glee. Jongup smiled awkwardly at the sudden praise, thanking Zelo for holding his coat, but didn’t bother to wear it. Allowing the sun to make the sweat on his muscles glisten. Zelo could barely tear his eyes off them. 

“Thanks, maybe next time you and I can dance together.” Jongup grinned, causing Zelo’s hearts to do flips. Yeah, he needed to start getting better at his dancing. Like now. 

“So why are you playing cupid for Himchan again?” Daehyun was eyeing Yongguk and Himchan as the two of them were walking around. Now it was team Daehyun and Youngjae’s turn to play matchmaker…except this time Youngjae was wearing a less inconspicuous outfit.  

“Because I’m a good friend,” Youngjae attempted to see what painting the two were looking at, but it was a bit difficult through the mask. “Uhg I can’t see a thing…” Youngjae groaned. 

“Well it doesn’t help that you’re wearing a giant chipmunk head, chipmunk.” Daehyun snickered as Youngjae threw a punch at him and missed.

“Uhg, you’re not helping the cause.” Youngjae sighed adjusting his chipmunk head a bit to get a better view. 

“Fine, fine, I’ll make my contribution,” Daehyun chuckled, eyeing a rack selling masquerade masks. Since it seems that Youngjae didn’t want to be seen or recognized, maybe this would suit him better than the chipmunk head. Daehyun went over to the rack, eyeing all the different mask designs and seeing which one suited Youngjae the most. Then he found it. A pretty yellow mask that had splotches of gradient orange and decorated with silver glitter. It was soft with hints of fire, just like the chipmunk. “Here, this way you’ll see better,” Youngjae looked down at the mask then back up at Daehyun. “I’ll keep an eye on them while you switch out masks okay?” Youngjae nodded, well his mask bobbed before switching out masks.

“Finally! Now this is more comfortable!” Youngjae smiled enjoying the ability to see and not sweat to death underneath the sauna mask. 

“It looks good on you.” Daehyun smiled, liking how the mask accentuated Youngjae’s button nose and sausage lips. 

“T-thanks…” Youngjae was slightly surprised at the sudden compliment. He never received a compliment from Daehyun before...not without a little snark that is. And he didn’t know why, but his heart was feeling all sorts of weird by that simple comment. 

“They sure make an odd couple don’t they,” Daehyun grinned as he watched Yongguk and Himchan. “Yongguk is like a bear while Himchan’s like a fox. Most unexpected pair I say.”

“Kinda like us.” Youngjae smiled, seeing the joy on Himchan’s face. 

“Nah, we’re better matched than those two.” Daehyun joked, causing both boys to laugh. 

“Oh crap! I have to help Himchan out. He’s giving me that deer in the headlights look.” Youngjae was about when a sudden influx of people arrived in their area, him to be pushed up against the wall. He closed his eyes tight, preparing to be crushed by the crowd. But he was fine. Actually he had an ample amount of breathing space. Youngjae opened his eyes to see Daehyun in front of him….very closely in front of him, both his hands on either side of Youngjae’s shoulders so that he wasn’t crushing Youngjae, but also protecting him from the crowd. Cliche right?

“So what do you think?” Yongguk turned to Himchan. Himchan on the other hand was internally panicking. He was waiting for Youngjae to say anything, but all he received on the other end was silence. 

“Um well...I think the color...is um….” Himchan fumbled with his words, thinking of something coherent, let alone intelligent, to say. Yongguk chuckled at the flustered Himchan, thinking now would be the appropriate time to end the charade, and reached out for Himchan’s earpiece.  

“Sorry Himchan I was a bit busy and-”

“Hi Youngjae,” Both Himchan and Youngjae froze. Yongguk just simply let out a low laugh at the whole situation. These guys were just so funny and adorable. “Thanks for helping out, but I’ll take it from here.” Yongguk turned off the earpiece and tucked it in his pocket. 

“How long did know…” Himchan stared down at his feet in shame, finding that the loose pebble on the floor was more interesting than the man in front of him, which was obviously a lie.

“Since the surrealism painting.” 

“So basically the beginning.” Himchan wanted to bury his head right now. In his next life he wanted to be an ostrich so he could just bury his head during his moments of shame. Like now. 

“Hey,” Yongguk gently lifted Himchan’s head up so that they were now eye to eye. “You don’t need to pretend to be something you’re not,” Yongguk smiled, assuring Himchan that he was not upset or disappointed or any other paranoia that was in Himchan’s brain. “I like being with Kim Himchan the diva who's actually a softie at heart and knows nothing about art. You don’t have to change any of that for me.”

“God, you’re amazing,” Himchan smiled at him, feeling so lucky that he fell for a man like Yongguk. All the effort and hard work was worth it. “So can we get out of here and grab a drink or something cause honestly looking at all these paintings is making me sleepy.”

“Sure, I know a good bar near here.” Yongguk grinned, taking Himchan’s hand in his as the two of them walked off towards the exit. 

“Looks like our job is done,” Daehyun grinned, happy to see Yongguk and Himchan walk out of the festival hand in hand. Youngjae and Daehyun were now walking around the festival, their turn to actually enjoy and have fun. “Good job, cupid.” Daehyun grinned at Youngjae who had trouble looking at him straight in the eye. 

“I really didn’t do anything.” Youngjae looked everywhere except Daehyun. Now that he was wearing a masquerade mask he could clearly see how good-looking Daehyun was. His hair was slightly messy, but in a y way. He was wearing a simple grey button up that hugged his muscles well with a silver necklace hanging around his neck. And the dark blue jeans that hugged his thick thighs were teasing Youngjae. Some higher power must hate him cause he was feeling all sorts of feels that good-looking Daehyun was conjuring.

“True.” Daehyun shrugged, a playful grin on his face. 

“I hate you.” Youngjae pouted, punching the other lightly on the arm. 

“No you don’t.” Daehyun looked down, gently tapping Youngjae’s button nose, causing the other to pout. 

“Yeah I do.” Youngjae growled, pulling on Daehyun’s cheeks.

“Ah! My precious face how could you.” Daehyun pouted, pursing out his lips. Lips that were oh so kissable. Lips that Youngjae was now staring at. 

“O-oh look there! Seems like cupid is at it again.” Youngjae turned away, trying to distract himself from Daehyun’s face. 

“Heh, I can’t wait to tease Jongup about this later.” Daehyun snickered, eyeing the cute youngins walking around excitedly. He hadn’t seen Jongup with such a bright smile since the last time he had a hamburger from Shake Shake Burger.  

“Don’t be an .” Youngjae rolled his eyes. 

“A good looking .” Daehyun corrected. “But on a more serious note, they really are cute.” 

“Yeah, they really are.” Youngjae’s eyes softened at the cute couple. He really wished he had something like that. Someone to love him. Cherish him. Accept him for him. “I’ve never had luck with finding the right guy.”

“You will, eventually. But for now you’re stuck in the singles club with me.” Daehyun playfully ruffled his hair. 

Youngjae scoffed, redirecting the topic to something other than his miserable love life. “So how’s your eye?” Youngjae swatted Daehyun’s hand away from his hair.

“Not too bad, what do you think?” Daehyun suddenly brought his face closer to Youngjae’s, making the boy jump a bit. 

“Uh...um…” Youngjae was lost for words, trying oh so hard to look at Daehyun’s eye and not his kissable lips. “Uh I think you’re too close for comfort.”

“Why? Does my beautiful face just stun you?” Daehyun snickered. Of course, leave it to Daehyun to ruin the mood. 

“No more like makes me want to bash my head against a ceramic vase.” Youngjae playfully stuck out his tongue at Daehyun. 

“Ouch, chipmunk. That really hurt,” Daehyun played mock pain, clutching his chest. “You can insult my sleeping partners, my life, hell even my job, but you shouldn’t hurt my good looks. That’s just a stab right into my ego.” 

“Maybe I should stab it a few more times then.” Youngjae chuckled, before seeing something that caught his eye. “Hey look at that over there! Let’s go check it out.” Youngjae was acting like a six year old at a candy shop, dragging Daehyun along to a booth. A finger painting booth to be exact.

“You want to paint...with our hands? You do realize that I’m wearing actual clothes and not a chipmunk suit like a certain someone.” Daehyun eyed the bottles of paint and blank canvas, unappealed by the idea.

“Don’t have a stick up your - and I swear if you say something erted I will wipe paint all over your shirt,” Daehyun immediately clammed up. “Come on, it will be fun! I haven’t done this since like elementary school.” Daehyun sighed, conceding to other’s request since he was so excited about it. 

After several minutes of painting...or in Daehyun’s case smearing colors around, he glanced over at the chipmunk’s work. “Pfft, what is that?” Daehyun chuckled seeing what seemed to be a yellow blob with some orange specks on it.

“It’s a baby chick.” Youngjae pursed his lips, not amused that Daehyun was laughing at his art.

“That’s a baby chick?” Daehyun tried to stifle his laughter, but it all seemed to escape in little spurts. 

“Yeah, got a problem with that?” Youngjae slightly glared, ready to defend his art work.

“No, but I think this looks more like a baby chick,” Daehyun wiped some yellow paint on Youngjae’s cheek, causing the younger’s jaw to drop. “Yep, definitely more like a baby chick.” He snickered. 

“Oh it’s on, buster,” The two began smearing more paint on each other than on the canvas, not caring that they were getting some stares. Albeit that Daehyun being covered in paint was still attractive so that may have been the reason for the stares. By the end of their little Picasso moment, both men were covered with every color of the rainbow and then some. “We are a f**kin mess.” The two boys burst out into laughter at how ridiculous they looked. Basically a magical rainbow unicorn vomited on them. 

“Speak for yourself, I’m a living Adonis.” Daehyun cheesily posed, only causing Youngjae to laugh even harder. His chubby cheeks out for all to see.

“Okay Mr. living Adonis,” Youngjae playfully mocked, gently running his thumb under Daehyun’s recently healed eye to remove some paint. A bright smile still painted on his sausage lips that Daehyun had learned to find adorable.  In that moment, seeing Youngjae so happy and laughing. To Daehyun, he actually seemed kinda cute. Daehyun’s joy soon turned to confusion as he felt his heart beating faster, his cheeks warming up. His heart was clenching so tight he thought he might be having a heart attack. “You okay, Daehyun?” Youngjae looked up him with confused eyes. Youngjae looked like a complete mess. Hair a mess, paint all over, him in a chipmunk suit. Everything just screamed horrid. But instead it was the opposite. Everything screamed cute to Daehyun.

“I-I don’t know…” Daehyun was feeling something for the disheveled chipmunk that he didn’t think he would ever feel. 

Thanks for reading! Comments and Feedback are much appreciated!

DUN DUN DUUUUN! The plot thickens now that Woojin has met Youngjae! And OMG Banghim is just too cute! Like I can't with the gummy bear! And Daedae is starting to have the feels! Heheh stuff is going doooowwwwnn!

Sorry wrote this super late so I am like dead tired and may or may not be spouting nonsense haha

ANYWAYS! I just want to thank all my subscribers, commentors, and voters for supporting me! Honeslty all your comments bring a smile on my face and make me so happy! Thank you all for being such sweet little angels~