Awkward Tensions
You Need Love on Your Birthday
It was around 3 o’clock in the morning when Jongup finally decided to get up. He was tossing and turning in bed because of how hungry he was. Himchan had told him that not eating the dinner would make Yongguk worry more, but now Jongup was starving.
He tiptoed out of the bedroom and slowly made his way to the kitchen in the dark. He didn’t turn any lights on in fear that he’d wake someone up. Jongup opened the refrigerator and saw some leftover tofu and kimchi. There were even a few pieces of fried chicken in the back corner. Jongup took out the chicken and kimchi, neglecting the tofu, and placed them on the table. He poured himself a glass of water, sat down, and started to eat in the dark.
Jongup was eating a piece of chicken when the lights suddenly came on.
“Oh, hyung! You scared me,” Jongup said, startled. There, standing in the kitchen doorway, was Yongguk.
“I thought I heard someone on my way to the bathroom,” Yongguk said quietly as he began to walk further into the kitchen, but stopped. “What are you doing up?”
“I got hungry,” Jongup replied. He was smiling at Yongguk as he waved a drumstick in the air. Yongguk felt better to see the dancer smiling, and he felt okay to approach and sit down at the table next to Jongup.
“I’m glad to see that you’re feeling better,” Yongguk remarked. The smile on Jongup’s face began to fade. He forgot that he was supposed to be ignoring Yongguk. The leader saw Jongup’s expression change and couldn’t help but to worry again. “Mianhe, I didn’t mean to bring it up.”
Jongup shook his head and said, “No, Gukkie-hyung shouldn’t apologize. I should apologize. Mianhe.”
Yongguk smiled when he heard what Jongup called him, but then looked confused when he heard the rest. “Why are you apologizing?” Yongguk asked. Jongup only sighed. “Whatever you’re going through, just know that I’m here. I can help.” Yongguk placed a hand on Jongup’s shoulder and squeezed lightly.
“Mianhe, hyung, mianhada,” Jongup said softly. Yongguk opened his mouth to respond, but Jongup kept talking. “I don’t want Gukkie-hyung to hate me.”
“What are you talking about? I’m not going to hate you.”
“But I don’t want Himchannie-hyung and Daehyunnie-hyung to hate me either.”
“Himchan? Daehyun? How are they involved?” Yongguk asked. “Did they do something?” Himchan and Daehyun were the most mischievous of the group after all.
“N- no, hyung, everything’s fine,” Jongup said as he stood abruptly, “I should go back to sleep.” Jongup quickly walked out of the kitchen, leaving behind a confused Yongguk. The leader was just about to get up when Jongup came back into the kitchen. “I forgot to put this stuff up.” The younger started to collect the trash and dirty dishes that he left behind.
“Jonguppie,” Yongguk called, causing the other to stiffen.
“Actually, I think I can just get everything in the morning.” Jongup was making his way out of the kitchen again when Yongguk stood and shouted.
“Jongup, will you just stop and tell me what’s going on!?”
Jongup turned around and faced Yongguk, looking like a deer caught in headlights. “Mianhe, hyung, nothing is wro-”
“Don’t lie!” Yongguk interrupted.
Jongup just looked down and mumbled, “Mianhe.”
“And stop apologizing!” Jongup only nodded and kept looking at his feet. Yongguk pulled out a chair and said, “Here, sit down, and tell me what’s going on.” Jongup sat down and looked at his lap. Yongguk sat next to him again and waited for the younger to speak, but Jongup remained silent. Yongguk sighed and grabbed Jongup’s chin, lifting his face so that they were looking eye to eye. “Just tell me,” the leader said more softly.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Mian… Mianhe, hyungs~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“Is food all that you ever think about?” Youngjae asked as Daehyun was pushing him down the hall. Daehyun had woke Youngjae up, pleading for the younger to make him breakfast.
“Mm, and my babies,” Daehyun answered.
Youngjae sighed and mumbled, “I wish our babies were here to make breakfast for us, instead of me every morning.”
“Yeah, that’s a good idea! I bet they’d be less grumpy about it than you are.”
“Mehrong!” Youngjae stuck his tongue out at Daehyun as they walked into the living room. They saw Yongguk and Jongup sitting on the couch. Jongup was actually asleep with his head leaning on Yongguk’s shoulder.
“What do we have here?” Daehyun asked, smirking. “Look at them, Jae.” Daehyun was nudging Youngjae and felt like screaming out: ‘Ha! He has Jonguppie now, so you’re all mine!’
“Give it a rest, Daehyun,” Yongguk grumbled out.
“Mwo?” Daehyun asked confused.
Youngjae snickered and said, “Thank you, Yonggukkie.”
“You too,” Yongguk said, looking at Youngjae, “and don’t call me that.”
Daehyun wanted to laugh at Youngjae, as well as celebrate how Yongguk didn’t seem taken with Youngjae anymore, but the tension in the room was thick, and he felt like Yongguk might murder him if he really did laugh right now. “What’s going on, hyung?” Daehyun asked.
“Gup here told me everything,” Yongguk said as he glanced briefly at the dancer from the corner of his eye. “Everything,” the leader repeated.
“Oh,” Daehyun mumbled.
“Told you everything about what?” Youngjae asked, confused.
“We’ll talk about it later, after he wakes up,” Yongguk said, gesturing to Jongup, “and after breakfast is made.”
Daehyun and Youngjae just looked at each other. Daehyun looked worried, while Youngjae looked confused. They both quickly scurried to the kitchen to avoid having Yongguk glare at them anymore.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~What’s going on?~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“Why didn’t hyungs wake me up?” Zelo asked as he walked into the kitchen, where the others were sitting at the kitchen table with breakfast in front of them. Zelo yawned and sat down between Yongguk and Youngjae. Zelo smiled at the amount of food on the table. “This looks good, Jae-hyung.” Zelo started to fix his food, when he noticed that no one else was eating. “Were hyungs waiting for me?” The thought made Zelo smile, but he quickly frowned when no one answered him. “What’s going on?”
“Well your hyungs decided to play a game without me knowing,” Yongguk said bitterly, “but now I know and I’ve won.”
“It’s not like that, Yonggukkie- I mean hyung,” Youngjae said.
“Yeah, I wasn’t playing a game,” Daehyun agreed, “I was just trying to stop Jae.”
“I didn’t need to be stopped!” Youngjae whispered furiously.
“Yes you did!” Daehyun whisper-shouted back. “Even Himchan-hyung thought so!”
“Well Himchan’s not here!”
“Why are hyungs fighting?” Zelo asked. “And what game? How come I didn’t know about it?”
“Zelo-ah, can you give us a minute?” Yongguk asked, gesturing for Zelo to step out of the kitchen.
“But hyung,” Zelo whined a bit and pouted, “what about breakfast?”
“You’re right. Daehyun, Youngjae, you guys don’t need breakfast right now. Come with me,” Yongguk said as he stood up.
“Mwo!? But breakfast is the most important meal of the day,” Daehyun complained, but shut up when he saw how Yongguk was looking at him.
“What about Jongup?” Youngjae asked.
“He can stay with Zelo,” Yongguk said as he led the two vocalists out of the kitchen.
Zelo turned to Jongup who hadn’t said a word since he got in there, and asked, “What was that all about?” Jongup sighed and shook his head in response. “Does that mean you don’t know or that you don’t want to say?”
Jongup looked at Zelo expressionlessly for a while before eventually saying, “I had a strange dream about a talking cheeseburger complaining about gum underneath bus seats.”
“Mwo!? What does that have to do with anything?” Zelo asked.
“Molla,” Jongup answered as he started to eat. Zelo sighed and started to eat too.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Breakfast: The Most Important Meal of the Day~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“Hyung,” Zelo said as he peeked his head into Yongguk’s room. He wasn’t sure if he should disturb the leader. There was a tense atmosphere in the dorm all day long. “Can I ask you something?”
“Of course,” Yongguk responded, putting his notebook away. He doubted that they could sing a song about playing games and being dishonest without things getting to awkward anyway. He just liked his lyrics to be real, though, and this was very real for him right now. “What is it, Zelo?”
Zelo started fidgeting with his fingers, which reminded Yongguk of when Jongup was doing that not too long ago. Yongguk hoped that Zelo wasn’t about to try to “win” him over too after some convincing from a hyung or two.
“What does hyung want for his birthday?” Zelo asked.
“Mwo?” Yongguk wasn’t expecting that.
“I’ve been thinking and thinking and thinking. I even asked Jonguppie-hyung, but I can’t come up with what to get you, at least nothing great.”
Yongguk chuckled before replying, “You don’t have to get me anything great. In fact you don’t have to get me anything at all.”
“But I want to get hyung something,” Zelo said as he began to pout.
“Well then get me some ramen.”
“But Youngjae-hyung always makes you ramen.”
“So get me raw ramen. I haven’t had any in a while because Jae always cooked it before I could say anything.”
“Araso, but is ramen all that you want?” Zelo asked, unsure.
“Ne,” Yongguk responded as he smiled and placed his arm around Zelo’s shoulders, “just being there and saying happy birthday is enough.”
Zelo smiled before an idea occurred to him, and then he smiled even more and said, “I know what I’ll get hyung! I don’t really know what the others did, but I’ll get them to apologize and stop fighting, so that it won’t be so weird on your birthday.”
Yongguk chuckled again and pulled Zelo in for a hug. “Thanks, Junhong. You are the only sane one here, but you’ll still get me that ramen, right?”
“Of course, hyung,” Zelo responded.
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A/N: So now Yongguk knows and Daehyun and Youngjae are in trouble (Himchan too), but Yongguk doesn't seem to be blaming Jongup.
I thought that I might have made Yongguk seemed a bit soft or weak, so I wanted to show him getting a bit more forceful.
Next chapter will be big, and not just because it will be the last. There will be confrontations and surprises. Look forward to it. Thanks for reading! Please comment!
Pic / GIF Spam (Zelo-centric):
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