A/N: If Hyunseung’s a Beauty-idiot, then Junhyung, I think, would be a Yoseob-idiot. Or at least that’s my headcanon. Apologies for the long, long wait; this chapter really took a while to write, as I struggled with how to best write some scenes here. Still, if you're able to enjoy the read, then it was all worth it. Thank you for your subscriptions, and of course your feedback is always welcome!

Touch 5

The inside of Junhyung’s mouth tastes bittersweet, the remnants of the Americano he was drinking earlier a strong contrast to the sweetness lingering on Yoseob’s tongue.

Their kisses start out chaste, hesitant at first, almost as if Junhyung is afraid to touch him. Yoseob doesn’t blame him. They’re quickly descending into unfamiliar territory; this magnetic attraction to each other is so very, very different from any previous relationships they’ve had, not to speak of the fact that they’re both men and subject to intense public scrutiny.

He should be worrying about it more, the fact that they’re doing exactly what  the rumors have speculated they are, but Yoseob’s mental faculties are reduced to half when Junhyung pulls away to nibble on an earlobe, then proceeds to yank down the collar of his turtleneck and scrape his teeth against the sensitive skin of his neck before sinking them in.

A breathy, high-pitched moan resounds inside the room, and Yoseob realizes, rather belatedly, that it’s coming from him. Junhyung immediately stills and looks at him.

“I…I didn’t mean to,” Yoseob says awkwardly, feeling terribly self-conscious. “I didn’t ruin the mood, did I?” Junhyung shakes his head, lips twitching.

The absurdity of it all makes them laugh.

“I should’ve recorded that,” the rapper murmurs, hands slipping down Yoseob’s sides to slide underneath the knitted fabric. His fingers trace meaningless patterns on his stomach, and he shivers involuntarily at the contact. “It was a y high note.”

Yoseob gives him the deadliest glare he can manage, but as expected it has no effect. Junhyung just cracks a smile, leaning in to kiss him again, tongue slipping inside his mouth.  He feels drunk on the taste of bitter coffee.

Junhyung his lips. “You’re so sweet,” he comments. He blinks. “You’re so sweet,” he repeats, and then he’s snatching up the notebook and pen conveniently left on his workdesk. Kissing appears to be the last thing on his mind now, Yoseob notes regretfully, or perhaps that is all it ever was for his friend, a way to get himself into a writing mood again.

Is that what he is to Junhyung now, his muse?

He’s not sure if he’s happy with that.

…

A cool hand cups his face and Yoseob opens his eyes. He’s learned not to get in the way when Junhyung’s working. Usually he would read or play a few games of his own, but the comfortable silence while his friend sounds out a few notes on the keyboard and the steady scratch of pen against paper lulls him to sleep.

“Taeju dropped by, you know,” Junhyung says with a crooked grin. “Wanted to know who the pretty girl on the sofa was.” He is suddenly wide awake and panicky. A large hand pats his head. “I told him to get us some food. Chicken's fine, right?” Right on cue Yoseob’s stomach lets out a grumble. Come to think of it, they had set off a little before noon, but they hadn't really had anything substantial to eat aside from the drinks they'd ordered at the cafe. He tugs at Junhyung's wrist to get a look at his watch. Nearly 2 in the afternoon...certainly skipping meals isn't very healthy, especially for his friend, whose eyebags have gotten much more prominent once he took on the role of producer and composer for the group.

He purses his lips and looks down, thinking of how someone else aside from Junhyung had caught him crossdressing. He's spoken to Taeju a few times, although not for long, their conversations usually revolving around music and Junhyung, the two topics they have in common. Sometimes he feels a slight pang of envy when they share an inside joke that he is not privy to, or when they reminisce about high school memories Yoseob knows nothing about, but it's obviously not rational to feel that way so he shoves it far back into a corner of his mind. 

Junhyung grabs his shoulder, reading far too much into the silence between them than Yoseob is comfortable with. "If you don't want him here, just say it." He wants to protest that it's fine, that what he wants isn't really that important, but he sees the sincerity in those dark eyes and he can't get the words out. "We're still not finished--"

Three knocks and then the door opens, revealing a hand with a plastic bag. Junhyung calls out Taeju's name testily, irritation evident on his face. "Stop fooling around and get in here!"

"A good friend knows when to make himself scarce."

"Scarce for what?" The rapper saunters up to the door and snatches the chicken. Taeju's hand makes a V sign and waves cheerfully before retreating, and Junhyung walks back to the sofa with a snort. "ing idiot."

Yoseb bites his lip trying not to laugh. Of course Junhyung wouldn't get it. His friend's smart as a whip, but he's always been more than a little dense when it comes to his own affairs. Either Taeju has completely mistaken him for a girl and thinks he and Junhyung need some alone time (Taeju doesn't wear or need glasses, though), or he's figured out it was Yoseob beneath the wig and makeup and thinks the two of them need some alone time anyway (as to whether he's decided it's the platonic sort or not, no one knows).

All things considered, he's certainly not wrong there. It would be nothing short of suicidal to just continue as they were without firmly establishing some ground rules. Was the fooling around a one-off thing, or is there some sort of schedule? Does kissing mean they've moved towards a relationship beyond being simply friends, or is this just what they call 'friends-with-benefits'? Yoseob mulls it over as he peels off strip after strip of chicken. He thinks of how to bring it up in casual conversation as the two of them clean up the table, thinks some more while washing his hands to get rid of the grease.

He still doesn't have a plan by the time Junhyung plays the track. It's hardly anything solid, just the sound of two or three pairs of notes played in strange dissonance on the keyboard, but then he starts singing.

"Oh flower you are so sweet, sweet, sweet,sweet/Oh flower, you are so deep, deep, deep, deep

Even after time passes, the thickly settled scent remains,/Oh baby, oh, oh, I'm addicted."

The moment he hears that husky voice sing the word flower like it's a caress, Yoseob knows he'll do anything to have that song, to have those lines as his own, because it's not just any song Junhyung wrote.

 It's a song born from the image of a blue rose and a sweet, chocolate milkshake-flavored first kiss.