“… He was totally hitting on me, I’m telling you,” Sungjong finally finished his rant, exasperatedly throwing the wooden spatula he was holding in his hand into the sink.

“Just because he handed you a handkerchief?” Myungsoo raised an eyebrow.

“But there was tension like everywhere!” Sungjong argued as he poured seaweed soup onto serving bowls.

“You say that every time,” Myungsoo pointed out as he grabbed a bunch of spoons and placed them onto the tray. “Remember when you thought Lee Min Ho was hitting on you?”

“He shouldn’t have held the door open for me!” Sungjong snapped, grabbing the tray into his hands. “You’re no help at all! I don’t even know why I’m telling you all of this—you never tell me anything useful.”

With that, the Fedora maknae stomped out of the kitchen. Myungsoo just shook his head in mild frustration when the kitchen door opened again, revealing a rather tall, angry-looking boy.

“What were you doing with him?” Sungyeol asked, crossing his arms.

“We were just talking,” Myungsoo shrugged. “You think I’d cheat on you with your cousin?”

“You know I don’t like it when you’re alone with him,” Sungyeol growled. “You don’t know what he’s capable of-”

“Don’t worry,” Myungsoo said, “there’s nothing happening between us. Besides, he thinks that someone’s hitting on him.”

“Who is it this time, Won Bin?” Sungyeol rolled his eyes, but then his gaze abruptly stopped on Myungsoo’s chest. “Are you seriously going to wear that?”

“What’s wrong with it?” Myungsoo frowned, looking down at his favorite purple shirt.

“Do you really have to wear that shirt on your birthday?” Sungyeol exclaimed in disbelief. “Why don’t you wear something I bought you?”

“But I like this one!” Myungsoo pouted. “It’s really stylish and colorful and comfortable and… and fashionable… and… and…”

“And Hoya gave it to you,” Sungyeol finished the sentence for him. “Seriously, Myungsoo, we’re dating now. How can you still be crushing on Hoya?”

“A fan’s love is different!” Myungsoo protested loudly. “I have to support my favorite singers with everything I have!”

“Does that include flying across half of the world to see them perform in LA?” Sungyeol snarled.

“Sungjong paid the flight ticket for both of us!” Myungsoo countered. “It was a free tour of California for both of us, so I don’t know what you’re complaining about!”

“You ditched me to go see them practice for the concert!” Sungyeol yelled. “Why is some dancing dude getting so much attention from you, even more than your boyfriend? What do I get?”

“This,” Myungsoo replied with a smirk, and with several steps, he closed the distance and pressed his lips onto the taller boy’s. He pulled away after a few seconds, grinning widely at the taller. “Satisfied?”

“Well,” Sungyeol took a deep breath, before also cracking a grin, “I will be if we-”

The rest of his sentence was drowned in the sound of the front door bell ringing, and Myungsoo immediately pulled away from his boyfriend. “ERMAHGERD, IT’S HOYA!”

“Yah, Kim Myungsoo!” Sungyeol shouted, but Myungsoo was already running for his life to get the door.

“Thanks so much for coming to my birthday party!” Myungsoo grinned at the newcomer. “I’m really glad that you accepted my invitation, hyung; if there is anything I can-”

“Huh?” a not-Hoya’s voice replied. Myungsoo furrowed his eyebrows and looked at the newcomer, and his eyes widened in shock. “Noo-noona-”

“How many times did I tell you not to open the door to strangers?” Kyungran barked at him, hitting him with her handbag. “What if I were a mass murderer? You’d all die here tonight!”

“I was just excited, that’s all,” Myungsoo grumped, massaging the spot on his arm where she hit him.

“Anyway, can someone help me with these boxes?” Kyungran called inside the apartment while pointing at three extremely heavy-looking boxes.

“Me, me!” Sunggyu yelled, bolting out of the couch faster than Myungsoo thought was possible. “I’ll help you, noonim!”

“Will you be alright?” Kyungran raised an eyebrow. “They’re pretty heavy, and you don’t seem…”

“I’ll be fine,” Sunggyu grinned widely at her. “Just leave them to me!”

“Alright,” she nodded and headed for her room. “Just leave them by the fridge, please; I’ll deal with them in a minute.”

“Yes, ma’am!” Sunggyu saluted, before grabbing the nearest one. With what seemed to be all he had, Sunggyu barely managed to lift the box up. “Urgh, can somebody help me?”

“I’ll help you,” someone from behind Sunggyu said. Myungsoo glanced in the direction and his heart skipped a beat.

“Ho-Hoya hyung,” Myungsoo stuttered. “When did you a-arrive?”

“Just now,” Hoya replied with a smug smile. “Hey, is that the shirt I gave you?”

“Uh,” Myungsoo blinked. Wearing it didn’t seem like a good idea anymore. “Yeah, it is… I hope you don’t mind…”

“No, it’s perfectly alright.” Hoya ruffled Myungsoo’s hair before turning his attention to the boxes. With one swift movement, he lifted the two remaining boxes with seemingly effortless ease. “These are pretty light, don’t you think?”

“Shut up,” Sunggyu growled, still struggling to lift his one box. Myungsoo rushed in to aid his friend, and like that, the three of them headed into the kitchen.

“Oh, you came?” Sungyeol shook his head when he saw Hoya enter. “We keep meeting lately for no obvious reason.”

“Yeolie!” Myungsoo pinched his boyfriend’s arm before turning to Hoya with a forced smile. “Thanks, hyung! Can you wait in the living room for a minute, please?”

“Sure,” Hoya nodded and ruffled Myungsoo’s hair, which earned him a deadly glare from Sungyeol.

“Yah,” Sungyeol turned his attention back to Myungsoo after Hoya left, “are you seriously going to be like this?”

“Like what?” Myungsoo shrugged. “I’m behaving perfectly norm-”

“Let me ask you a question,” Sungyeol interrupted him. “If he and I were drowning, which one would you save first?”

“Let me think,” Myungsoo frowned.

“Yah!” Sungyeol shouted. “Why do you have to think?”

“You,” Myungsoo said with several head nods. “I’d save you first.”

“Really?” Sungyeol asked, failing to keep his stern expression as a tiny laugh escaped his mouth.

“Because Hoya can swim,” Myungsoo winked at Sungyeol before quickly running out of the kitchen so he wouldn’t have to deal with the angry Sungyeol.

“Kim Myungsoo, you—yah!” Sungyeol screamed when it finally dawned on him. “That was a line from his drama, wasn’t it?!”

“We’re finally all here!” Myungsoo laughed as he ran toward the couch in the living room, sliding in between his sister and Hoya. “Let’s begin!”

“Yah, Kim Myungsoo!” Sungyeol yelled as he arrived into the living room running as well. “You get out of that spot right now!”

“I don’t want to,” Myungsoo stuck out his tongue at the tall boy, snaking his left arm around Hoya’s biceps.

As soon as he did it, Sungyeol lost control of himself. Fuming red, he dashed in between Myungsoo and Hoya in an attempt to pry Hoya’s arm out of Myungsoo’s reach. Myungsoo, of course, wouldn’t bulge, and the two of them engaged in a heated combat over an arm whose owner’s expression looked like he’d pass out any moment. No matter how hard Sungyeol tried to loosen Myungsoo’s grip, the latter would just hold onto the idol’s arm even harder.

After several seconds, Myungsoo felt Sungyeol’s arm suddenly appearing above Myungsoo’s abdomen. With horror, Myungsoo realized what Sungyeol’s plan was, but it was already too late. Sungyeol started tickling him, making Myungsoo burst out into laughter and roll around on the sofa.

“Stop!” Myungsoo managed to shout out between his outbursts of laughter.

“Let—him—go!” Sungyeol growled.

“I—I can’t—” Myungsoo kicked with his leg and hit something cold, wet, and soft.

Suddenly, all movement and struggle ceased. Everyone fell silent, including the previously panting Sungyeol and the shaking Myungsoo. They all looked in the direction of where Myungsoo kicked with utmost horror.

“Are you guys done?” Kyungran whispered icily, removing remnants of the chocolate fudge cake from her face. A thunder cracked outside, rain started to pour, and Myungsoo knew immediately that the moment his guests left, all hell would break loose.