A/N: Happy belated birthday to Jinyoung!<3 

Park Jinyoung was the most empathetic member, he knew the emotional state of the other members and what was going on at all times, felt their pain and joined their happiness while crying harder than anyone else, preferably somewhere, where nobody could see. Mark saw it though, and Jackson only noticed because Mark drew attention to him. As if being adapted to Jinyoung’s feelings, Mark put arms around him a second before the tears fell, comforting him before anyone else did. Jackson was fine with being second to do that, because Mark had a weak spot for “mother” figures and Jackson knew that since he saw the way Mark interacted with his own mother and with all the other mothers of the Got7 members. Mark would act a lot cuter, become younger by a decade and hug them a lot around the waist.

Sometimes, Jackson thought whether this was how Mark would act as a boyfriend, too. With the way Mark behaved around Jinyoung at times, Jackson could imagine it all too well. The two would even make Jackson the most jealous, if Jackson didn’t know Jinyoung like the back of his hand.

Jinyoung was his best friend and he knew it was the other way around most of the times, Jinyoung was more jealous of his close relationships with the other members, no matter how many times Jackson tried to reassure him of their special bond, Jinyoung still sulked about that one time Jackson went without him to eat meat with Bambam. That’s who Jinyoung was, a worrier in his nature with the favourite pastime of having many, many negative thoughts, from which Jackson tried to distract him as much as possible.

Jackson thought this was how Jinyoung got close to Mark however, if one pensive and soft-spoken person met another, they were bound to understand each other sooner or later. Probably later since Jackson heard the story of their first encounter and how Mark thought Jinyoung fooled him by introducing himself as JYP, the same name by which their company’s founder went, an unfortunate coincidence that made Mark suspicious of Jinyoung for the longest time.

Jackson didn’t know when the ice broke between the two, but there were many possible occasions in the past, not so much during their trainee days since Jinyoung debuted two years earlier as part of JJ Project, but more in the early stages of Got7 after the group was formed. Back then, Jinyoung already acted like a parent who worried over every step the new additions to his family took and gave extra care to his foreign members, making the effort of talking to them in English in case they didn’t understand anything or felt left out.

One of those occasions was, when Jinyoung got sick during the first season of Real Got7 and the members visited him at the hospital, Jackson still remembered how happy Jinyoung got and how he proudly presented them to the camera as his “babies,” telling them, even the one-year older Mark, to have a seat on his lap because “I’m your mom, come on.” Jackson and Mark didn’t protest for too long since Jinyoung looked very pale and barely cured.

This happened shortly before Jinyoung opened up the kiss-parade, an era that actually made Jackson jealous of the two before he knew what that jealousy meant. Jackson didn’t know why, maybe he was too busy playing with Bambam, but Mark looked sulky for a moment during another episode of Real Got7 and Jinyoung used this opportunity to land a kiss on Mark’s cheek, not only surprising him, but also making Jackson’s jaw drop who watched it happen from afar. Of course Mark felt insulted enough to have the urge of taking revenge for that kiss by doing exactly the same to the pouty Jinyoung during an episode of IGot7. That’s how the back and forth started, Mark kissed Jinyoung’s wrist before slapping the same spot as a punishment for a lost game during Real Got7, Jinyoung kissed his cheek during the Naver Starcast dorm revelation, then Mark kissed Jinyoung’s cheek during an IGot7 episode, in which Jinyoung acted out the role of an offended mom, and Jinyoung kissed Mark’s cheek again during another IGot7 episode after Mark confessed his love to Jinyoung for treating him well and being his teammate in the show.

The IGot7 show days altogether were another occasion for them to grow closer, especially when Jinyoung became Mark’s Korean history teacher who tried to convey his knowledge properly, not like Youngjae who allowed Jackson to cheat by writing all the answers on his palms, the most obvious method to get caught. Jackson hated how Youngjae insisted to stay in the same team together, even though they lost during the history episode, he also hated how Mark and Jinyoung could team up again and did so well that they caught the most fish in the next episode. He only got little satisfaction when Mark and Jinyoung couldn’t eat their own fish in the end, because Mark promised to treat Jinyoung to Sashimi afterwards and that while giving him a comfort-hug.

The two developed a natural show of skin-ship during this time, the initiation may have been a couple skit with Mark using his “too much lotion” pick-up line on Jinyoung, where he rubbed the imaginary excess all over Jinyoung’s hands, but it soon led to more ordinary handholding, hugging, back-hugging, lifting the other off the ground, or even the very intimate fingers-intertwining. Jackson knew that Jinyoung loved to intertwine fingers during emotional moments after special events such as winning awards, he had done it with Jinyoung, too. Jackson found Mark’s overuse of “Kabe-don” during their whole first Japanese concert tour and Jinyoung’s toleration of it weird though, the slamming of a hand against the wall and pinning a person between it and yourself, moreover, when Yugyeom was the wall or when Mark’s Kabe-don on Jinyoung made a return during their NHK One Point Korean lessons. He did a parody of it with Bambam in the lessons but that was only a little revenge. The Kabe-don may have been mostly fan-service, like the “Yuka-don” that Mark did on all the members during their first Japanese Fanmeeting in Osaka, which was basically the floor-version of Kabe-don and Mark jumping on every member who lay on the ground, but Jinyoung saying that someone liked to squeeze his in elevators and Mark confessing that it was he, because Jinyoung’s was so prominent, was certainly not fan-service. It wasn’t fan-service, either, when the two developed the habit of falling asleep while leaning on each other’s shoulder since their Real Got7 season 2, or when Jinyoung told the story of how he found Mark with Coco sleeping on his bed one day when he returned late to their dormitory. This would explain why Jinyoung chose Mark as the member with the prettiest face while sleeping, he had seen it. Jackson couldn’t even be mad at Jinyoung for this, because he totally agreed as Mark’s roommate.

Jackson didn’t get mad, either, about Mark and Jinyoung choosing each other as the member they would want to join the fan-club of, with both of them reasoning, “because he’s cute.” He did the same with Bambam.

He did complain, however, when Jinyoung and Mark started to record a V app video without him. Jinyoung told him to come over and greet the fans because they wanted to see him, but he rejected the offer and told Jinyoung to continue comfortably recording with Mark only. When Jinyoung got suspicious and told Jackson he didn’t accept a no, Jackson let his envy shine through and told Jinyoung that he was hurt by him, not caring about the live broadcast, what the fans might think, or what Jinyoung thought that Jackson was honestly, 100% percent, hurt about. The moment Jinyoung asked him for the reason, Jackson was really going to mention the meat-issue instead, but, to his surprise, Jinyoung guessed the true reason all by himself when Mark questioned him why Jackson was hurt.

“I think it’s because I’m doing V app with you right now,” he told Mark and, for once, Jackson wished that Jinyoung’s empathetic instincts may be damned, because he couldn’t look at or talk to Mark without being awkward for the rest of the day, even declining Mark’s joke of a phone-call during another broadcast, regardless of how sweet the thought behind it was, which was Mark being supposed to call someone he was really thankful to.

Jinyoung would only get jealous again, if Jackson accepted the call and helped Mark out to complete his mission, as if Jinyoung and Mark didn’t have enough already to get jealous over each other.

Jinyoung got jealous of Mark choosing Jackson as the most loyal member during one of their weekly V app sessions, and Mark got jealous every time Jinyoung did the JJ Project entry with Jaebum during any Got7 show.

It was ridiculous, their jealousy-parade lasted longer than the kiss-parade, Jinyoung ended up being jealous of each and everything, even their iGot7 fans, when Mark told them in a commercial for the Simply K-Pop show that he loved them, Jinyoung said, “eww, can you stop?” and Mark reprimanded him with, “don’t be jealous,” as if that would stop him.

Jinyoung got also jealous of Mark revealing that he got phone-calls of V from time to time, a friend from another group. Jinyoung asked him very straightforwardly, whether the two were a fling and earned a hard knock on his chest instead of an answer.

Mark wasn’t any better, he looked jealous when Jackson tried to give Jinyoung a birthday-kiss on the cheek, he looked jealous throughout their second dorm revelation with Naver, when Jackson tried to get close to Jinyoung by bodily hugging him, which was actually an attempt at distracting Jinyoung from his sulky state because of the meat-issue, Mark got jealous when Jackson and Jinyoung talked too closely during Fanmeetings, even coming over and hitting Jackson on the neck that one time, and he looked really jealous during their Mubibank Stardust comeback talk, when Jinyoung re-enacted a scene of Descendants of the Sun and kissed Jackson near his mouth, with red lipstick and all.

The other members may have looked disgusted, jealous like Mark, closed their eyes, held their laughter or smiled, but Jackson didn’t find it funny at all, he wanted to hit Jinyoung really hard for the cheek and for being on the receiving end of Mark’s death-glares.

Mark interrupted his Got2Day interview with Jinyoung, too, with the excuse that his own interviews weren’t funny, but Jackson slowly thought that Mark was the most jealous when Jinyoung was just with him.

Another indication towards this theory came much later, during another V app recording after a concert, when they were all sitting next to each other and Jinyoung tried to hold onto Jackson’s thigh but Mark intercepted his hand and held it instead. It seemed fishy to Jackson, he said nothing though, since Mark held his thigh in a cover-up attempt, and it was distracting.

Nevertheless, the two were not only full of jealous moments, Jinyoung and Mark did have their sweet times. For example, Jinyoung comforted Mark just as much as Mark did, wiping his tears away the few times that Mark decided to cry freely, not forgetting the comfort-kiss on the cheek, Jackson knew because he had seen it during one of their first Japanese concerts.

The two were also, loyal to their personalities, very soft-spoken during games, promising each other sweetly they would do well during a mission recording for The Show.

Mark liked to offer his home-cooked meals to Jinyoung, too, feeding Jinyoung portions of his Ramyeon and opening water-bottles for Jinyoung to prevent him from choking on the burning-hot noodles, Jackson had not only seen this happening at their dormitory a few times, he had also seen Mark’s V live cooking recording while he was in China, not missing Mark’s shout-out. The two shared similar tastes and could eat hot and spicy stuff, but Mark was right, Jackson sweated just at the sight of the noodle-soup colour. Jinyoung was so used to eat from Mark’s pot, that he did it unconsciously even when Mark did not offer anything, but Mark was quick to forgive Jinyoung for stealing his Ramyeon every now and then. It was a humble trait that Mark shared with Yugyeom, they both were never resentful for too long, which Jackson greatly appreciated.

Jinyoung and Mark also protected each other a lot, Jinyoung worried a lot over Mark’s tumbling stunts on stage, not that the other members didn’t, but he was the first one to catch Mark in time to avoid accidents, while Mark used his right as the oldest member to punish the youngest ones, if they dared to fool around with Jinyoung.

He also took care of Jinyoung when Jinyoung was supposed to skateboard for a shooting, helping him wear his skating-gear and showing him a few tricks, because Mark was the best at skateboarding. This was possibly one of the reasons why Jinyoung was so impressed by Mark that he complimented him just as often as Bambam on his coolness and looks, saying cheesy things like, “aw, my Hyung is so pretty,” even during radio shows. Mark would respond with a smile and lightly pet Jinyoung’s hair then, it was Mark’s quiet way of showing appreciation. He sometimes did it to Jackson, too.

Where Jackson didn’t expect any protection of Jinyoung, was at one of their Fly concerts and that from himself. Mark and Jinyoung were in a unit together with Youngjae, parodying a GFriend song and being cross-dressed with knee-revealing dresses, a rare sight. Mark’s legs, first and foremost, caught Jackson’s attention, they looked so thin, pale and smooth that Jackson went and asked Mark whether he could touch them. He was just curious whether Mark had shaved his legs or they felt as smooth as they looked. It wasn’t like Jackson was going to attack Mark, but Jinyoung held him back, building a barrier with his arms and hiding Mark behind his back. It was a hilarious situation to begin with, so Jackson fought his way through the barrier and he didn’t regret it, at least Mark and the audience had a good laugh.

This wasn’t the only unit that Jinyoung and Mark did together for the Fly concerts, they performed their self-composed song “Higher,” too, and Jackson was honestly a bit hurt that they didn’t let him participate in it, although he was busy with his own “WOLO” unit together with Yugyeom and Bambam. He just wanted to be asked to participate since it was the thought that counted. Though the song was too short for Jackson’s liking, it didn’t turn out to be that bad, it had the charms of both, Mark and Jinyoung. Jackson told them so and they liked the criticism so much that he forgave them. It also helped that the two complimented him on his own self-composed song.

Eventually, nothing of this made Jackson really mad or aware of his jealousy and question the depth of Jinyoung and Mark’s relationship.

The true reason was really stupid, when he thought about it, but it did make the last glass of obliviousness crash around him.

It happened during their Flight Log: Departure Meet and Greet with the fans for MWave. Out of all the hundred messages by the fans, Jackson chose to read one by chance that made him inwardly freeze but his tongue work enough that words could leave his mouth, even if his voice sounded automatic and foreign to himself. Yugyeom, who was sitting next to him, must have felt his sudden coldness, because Yugyeom started holding onto his arm.

“Markjin forever <3 Got7 fighting,” was the content, from Kevin Wong, Hong Kong, out of all the cities in the world, Jackson could not forget.

Maybe he would, sometime in the future, because the agitating thing was the message itself, and how Mark and Jinyoung reacted with laughter, hitting each other’s imaginary buttons and playing “I love you”- dolls.

Jackson seriously pondered whether he had missed some important events in the lives of his best friends while he was busy in China, how could the fans think that Markjin was a thing? He always thought that Markson was the most popular couple among the fans, he had actively participated in pushing one of his own couples among the members to the front.

So, how come he didn’t read a Markson message but a Markjin instead? Did the fans see something that he did not? He knew Jinyoung like the back of his hand, at least he thought so, Jinyoung was supposed to tell him everything as his best friend. Jackson sulked for the rest of the event by hugging a Squirtle plush toy that one of the fans gave to him.

Once they were back at the dorm, Jackson decided this couldn’t continue any longer. He had to approach Jinyoung for a serious talk and he wasn’t going to beat around the bush.

“Jinyoung, are you, by any chance, dating Mark and forgot to tell me?” was the first thing Jackson said once he closed and barricaded Jinyoung’s bedroom-door behind himself.

Jinyoung sighed, staring right into his eyes and replied in a calm tone, “scream louder, why don’t you,” surprising Jackson.

“Are you, or are you not?” Jackson repeated in a whisper.

Jinyoung rolled his eyes very hard, “of course not.”

Jackson felt a heavy weight being lifted off his chest.

“Seriously, you read one Markjin message and think the whole world is going down. Do you really think I wouldn’t tell you such an important thing?”

Jackson felt ashamed. “No, I knew you would, I’m sorry I even asked,” said Jackson and was going to clear up the barricade he created, when Jinyoung stopped him on his way.

“Not so fast, come and sit down,” he said and made Jackson sit next to him on his bed, holding his hands. He even intertwined their fingers and let Jackson get used to it for a minute, as if it was one of those moments. It surely warned Jackson enough to become very vigilant. “So tell me,” Jinyoung said.

“What?” asked Jackson.

“The thing you wanted to tell me for so long, and before you say you don’t know what, remember who I am.”

The room was quiet but Jackson’s heart pounded hard enough in his ribcage that he heard his pulse in his ears loud and clearly. Of course Jinyoung knew before anyone else, he was the most empathetic, he knew Jackson’s emotional state before Jackson did.

“I think I’m in love with Mark.”

Jinyoung released a heavy breath and smirked at him. “Do you know how long you made me wait to hear that, you little rascal?”

Jackson released Jinyoung’s fingers and pushed hard against his chest. “Shut up, brat.”

They both laughed and hit each other playfully.

“Oh god, I’m so done,” he said and palmed his face, falling back on the bed. “Tell me, since when?” he asked between the spaces of his fingers.

Jinyoung fell back next to him and faced him. “You told me to shut up.”

“Come on, tell me,” Jackson said again, lifting one hand to poke Jinyoung’s ribs.

“All right, stop that,” Jinyoung shifted away, out of the finger’s reach but Jackson shifted with him, pulling him back and holding his hips in place. “Do you remember,” Jinyoung started, smiling at him and softly driving fingers through strands of his short hair, “when I made Mark play Snow White and you Prince Charming?”

Jackson inhaled deeply, his jaw wide open. “You also made me play the seven dwarfs and the evil mother. But that was ages ago!”

Jinyoung looked like he tried his best to hold back his laughter. “Well, yes. That’s when I already knew it for ages. I just waited for you to find it out on your own.”