“you don’t really do these types of things, do you.” it isn’t a question, more like an amused statement.

“no,” comes his clipped reply, because it’s true and he’s not too keen on explaining himself. jooheon really doesn’t do “these types of things.” he isn’t anti-social, he’s got plenty of friends. there’s just something very not entertaining about frat parties. now, the rap parties on campus? those are different. those are fun, if you get lucky enough to find one.

but that’s beside the point, which is that fraternity parties are just gross. bottles and cups scattered everywhere, full of questionable substances he’s not excited to taste. bodies all over the carpet, really just drunk safety hazards sprawled out like this is a church altar. whether it’s seeing a faced freshman puking in the corner or groaning at the dj’s terrible choices in music - jooheon just isn’t here for it. he doesn’t even know why he’s here at all.

actually, no - that would be a lie. he knows why he’s here. wonho isn’t exactly the best roommate when it comes to being chill since he’s got enough energy to make a three-year-old hopped up on ten pixie sticks jealous, but he’s showed up to class with jooheon’s missing assignments on multiple occasions and he’s pulled some essays out of his and he’s just been a really good friend in the past, so the younger boy owes him to say the least.

anyway, the boy he’s trying to impress - chang something - is really into rap, and apparently jooheon is someone he looked up to (???), so he would be doing wonho a really huge solid if he put in good word in for him.

which is fine. jooheon’s okay with being used like that, if it means saving wonho’s dying love life. (how it’s dying, he has no clue.) he won’t let the scarring of his eyes and ears go to waste.

turns out chang-whatever is the polar opposite of wonho: quiet, for one, and just as done with this party as jooheon is, so they get along just fine. the kid says he raps as well, which comes as a surprise to him but he rolls with it. they exchange numbers, and then wonho’s dragging him off somewhere, telling jooheon to wait up while he searches for hyungwon or something, and that’s the end of it.

jooheon does as he’s told, but wonho doesn’t come back immediately, so he ends up standing against the wall with a red cup in hand and a stranger by his side, watching all these people pack together making excruciatingly obscene movements on the dancefloor.

“sorry,” the kid says or, rather, hollers because they’re standing ten feet away from a speaker. some idiot decided it was a good idea to put his ty edm on full blast. at this point jooheon’s over it. he’s tried escaping once, in hopes that he’d find a quiet room or something, but everywhere he went there was either somebody ing or too many weird people to tolerate.

so it’s whatever.

the guy says something - jooheon doesn’t know what and really doesn’t want to ask. but he finds himself closing in because, well, why not. “am i boring you?” the guy repeats, this time a lot louder because he’s leaned in, lips hovering just a few inches from his ear.

jooheon gives himself some room, parts his lips to respond even though he’s at a loss for words. he’s hardly even noticed him standing there so he can’t say no, but, in the same light, they’d barely conversed past simple yes or no questions.

“no.”

the boy’s eyes light up like jooheon’s dropped a wad of cash in his hand.

“oh. okay. well, um. you’re jooheon, right?” this is what catches him a bit off guard. “my name’s gunhee.”

he doesn’t really pay attention to the name. he’s not looking for something to call out should they end up in bed later. (highly unlikely, anyway, but - just saying.) “yeah,” he says, completely ignoring the ‘gunhee’ part. “how do you know?”

the guy smiles, feet shuffling. jooheon says nothing and his facial expression doesn’t change (he hopes), but there’s a gentle flip deep in his gut. “i bought your mixtape a few weeks ago.” he coughs, but jooheon can’t actually hear him, just sees it. “you’re really good.” this night’s just full of surprises.

well. not surprising about him being good per se - he’s got people up his enough to know he’s decent at his craft - but the fact that someone acknowledged his work. that’s nice. for the first time that night, jooheon allows himself to smile. “thanks.”

and then the kid blinks, like he’s surprised or some . “whoa,” he says slowly. “you look better when you smile.” jooheon frowns, not on purpose, but just out of habit.

that’s something people? don’t? usually? say?

the guy seems to understand this concept, too, because he sputters a second later - “, that was creepy. i mean, rude, whatever.” he chuckles, intertwining his own fingers. yup, jooheon concludes with a casual glance his way, definitely nervous. “you...look good regardless? but, like, when you smile, the whole i’ma you up thing moves down to subtext.”

it doesn’t take long for jooheon to realize what this guy’s doing - or, well, trying to do. he can’t say he’s failing because if the goal is to amuse jooheon then he’s got something going for him. but, still, if this is the same trick he uses to pick up women….

“i’m sorry, you’re probably really creeped out, um.” he rubs circles into his hand, teeth gnawing on lip as he tries to think of anything to save him. “can we just start over? like, you didn’t hear anything i just said and i was talking to the oxygen or - ” by now jooheon’s actually laughing, thinking what the , who is this guy - “wait, what’s so funny?”

“you?”

“oh.” his mouth literally forms that ‘o’ shape. “oh, okay. yeah.”

“what’d you say your name was again?”

“gunhee. song gunhee.” he offers his hand after a moment of staring at him.

“song gunhee, huh.” he takes the hand - sweaty palms, ew - and the guy nods like he’s legitimately shy. the name sounds way too familiar.  “you minho’s cousin? the rapper?” he tilts his head a little bit, the hand still clasped in his, and examines gunhee with narrow eyes.

gunhee seems to tense at the question. his tongue darts across his lower lip. he looks like he’s been caught and jooheon, who’s reading into this like it’s his favorite magazine, realizes it in an instant. “i didn’t think anyone would notice.”

he looks nothing like minho, but they aren’t brothers, so he can’t expect them to look identical. gunhee’s face is wide and round, though, and he has a set of big black doe eyes that jooheon finds too mesmerizing to be true.

when his fingers twitch inside jooheon’s, he remembers that they’re still shaking hands and he pulls away quickly. “it’s - ” he coughs, be cool man be cool “ - it’s cool. i heard your song a while ago.” (which was completely completely true, except jooheon wanted to do more than just hear it. the song roasted him alive, and every time he listened to it he kinda wanted to burn down his entire building, wave some flags, like that.)

“r-really?” gunhee cracks a grin. “what did you think?”

jooheon nods, nods like an idiot. "i mean, i-i liked it. how come i've never seen you around at the rap parties? i think you'd do great for a solo show." gunhee’s grin grows in a way that suggests he's shy about the entire situation. like receiving a compliment in person isn’t something that happens often. maybe it's because not many people are aware of #gun. maybe it's because he presents himself as that weeknd-type artist who's too lowkey for his name to be passed about like it's hot . but the weeknd went mainstream, even he had to come out of his shell. now look where he is.

jooheon trades eyes with gunhee for a split second, and that gentle flip in his stomach tumbles into a full-blown somersault. before he realizes it, their gazes are lingering, until split seconds turns into minutes of them just standing, smiling at one another.

awkward, this is awkward. where is wonho.

"so, uh," gunhee clears his throat. it’s probably the most uncool way he's ever started an invitation to leave with someone, but he pushes off the wall trying to go for casual. “care to join me and ditch this dump?”

“why?” the corners of his lips curl upward.

“this party is wack. you don’t exactly look like you’re gaining anything from it either.” it sounds weak, but it’s still true. wonho’s probably in a closet somewhere with his little crush; jooheon he won’t be back anytime soon. but he’s a big boy, which means he can find a way to get home. “and i’m kinda craving a taco?”

jooheon shrugs but he swears he feel some wind leaving his body when he receives a toothy, pleased smile. he sets his cup on the floor. nobody would care if he left it there, seeing as there are fifty other cups elsewhere. after a quick adjustment of his snapback, jooheon follows gunhee through the crowd of drunks, happy to have an escape route. “taco bell sounds nice.”