Just a short disclaimer: This is purely a work of fiction with an attempt at canon and if the GOT7 boys or JYPE have a wish for this to be taken down, then I will do so. Please, don't upload this fic anywhere else, this is my only account. Thanks and enjoy!

Jackson Jia Er Wang met Mark on the first night he joined JYP entertainment, on July 3rd, 2011 and it was raining. They immediately clicked as if pieces of a bigger picture fell into place and the only reason Jackson remembered it was raining that night, was, that Mark carried an umbrella above their heads when they went out to eat ice cream together not only minutes after they exchanged the first few sentences. It was a subtle, yet caring gesture that left a lasting impression on Jackson and it was one of the reasons Jackson liked to call this stage the “being captivated by each other at first sight.” Mark had short, black hair back then, not as short as Bambam kept reminiscing about his own first encounter with Mark, but still shorter than present and enough of a difference to haunt Jackson’s memories for him to remember this, as if it was yesterday.

Jackson was so relieved they could communicate in every language Jackson spoke, that he was very thankful to Mark and relied on him a lot during his first trainee days, when his Korean was still lacking. English was the language they naturally fell into when their Korean wasn’t sufficient enough and spoke it most often, so Bambam could join their conversations from time to time and the others understood titbits at least. Chinese, however, was their secret connection and the language they spoke when they wanted nobody to understand them, a thing a little difficult to hide from Bambam since he, too, spoke the language to a certain amount but not when they used the harder words or talked really fast.

Sometimes, Jackson thought that Mark would speak Chinese after addressing him in Korean and English just to annoy him in three different languages. Most frequent example was, Mark asking Jackson for shampoo. After asking for it in two languages and being ignored by Jackson, on purpose, Mark tried his luck in Chinese to get Jackson’s attention. The ignoring part worked pretty well, till Mark decided to call him “Ga Ga” as his last option and found out the nickname triggered a response from Jackson no matter what. A sudden warmth would rise around Jackson’s heart, a wave of fondness would make his body stop in motion and be very attentive of the voice calling him in his surroundings, probably because his mother was the only one who called him by that nickname nowadays, she, in the past, his old fencing and school mates did it, and after it became widely known, some Chinese fans. At this point, Jackson would be too soft to deny Mark his shampoo so he always gave in. If he regretted this action, he would tell himself that he did it out of respect for the older Mark. The same reasoning went for turning off the lights when they roomed together. Every time Mark asked him, Jackson would do it without a word of complaint, even though he wanted to. At times, Mark telling him to turn off the lights, was the only thing Mark said to him so Jackson thought it was not worth it to start a fight about such a trivial thing and just did it.

Nonetheless, the good points about rooming with Mark outweighed the bad ones by so many that Jackson started to miss Mark once he left their bedroom. He had nobody who listened to his endless stories and sorrows in the middle of the night or ungodly early hours when he couldn’t sleep anymore, nobody he could share his favourite YouTube videos with at 1 AM, nobody who would walk to the 24/7 Samgyeopsal restaurant with him at 4:30 AM, nobody who watched and tolerated his three up-tempo and two slow-tempo dances before he hit the mattress, and nobody else who stood awake with him and would put up with his issues. Jackson knew he had an outgoing and more difficult character to hang around with, but he didn’t know that it was only the most introverted and patient member who could manage him long-term. Even though he often joked about Mark being like a wall in their bedroom, he appreciated how Mark listened to him without exception and expressed so by giving sounds of approval or disapproval in the right pauses that Jackson left for him or his angelic, high-pitched laughter that made Jackson proud to have caused it. At rare times, Mark would even come down from his bunkbed and give a crying Jackson a quick hug, at other times, he would measure the temperature on Jackson’s forehead with his hand when Jackson was sick and pretending to be asleep. These were the appreciated moments Jackson knew that Mark actually cared for him, though, he had to admit that nothing screamed as much “I care for you” as a grilled meat plate at 4:30 in the morning.

Rooming with Jaebum was something else, not better but maybe a little worse, if Jackson was honest with himself, because it was completely different from what he was used to and neither he, nor Jaebum liked changes. It wasn’t even the change in itself that Jackson didn’t like, it was the adjusting part. He had to adjust to the new surroundings after having left his old bedroom and joining Jaebum’s, to the new temperature since his old bedroom with Mark was cold in winter and only hot in summer while Jaebum’s bedroom with Youngjae was harbouring the main boiler to the apartment and felt like a sauna at all seasons, probably the reason why Youngjae left Jaebum alone and sought sanctuary in the living room in the first place. He had to adjust to the habits of his new roommate and to the fact that Mark wasn’t there to tolerate everything he did. It was Jaebum who was a complainer by nature and who had to deal with his own problems on top of the long list that Jackson presented him with before going to sleep every night, especially when Jackson pointed out that he wanted to feel the cool wind of the fan on the top-bunkbed, too, and Jaebum once lost it while yelling that he couldn’t put the fan on anything higher than the table it was standing on. Besides that, Jackson knew the heavy burden of leader-responsibilities weighed down on Jaebum’s shoulders and he couldn’t even imagine how troubling that was. It was also difficult to overcome the huge wall of respect that existed around the leader in order to get closer to him.

So Jackson tried to hold back on sharing his troubles, because Jaebum looked annoyed with him lately. Jackson kept his silence, tried to solve his problems by himself and by learning through close observation of Jaebum, a method that brought him many enlightenments.

It wasn’t even that long a time since they roomed together, when Jaebum taught him another life’s lesson; consideration.

“Hey, Jaebum-hyung.”

“What now? Is it time for the 1 AM video clip? If it’s about the kitten that’s riding a tortoise, you’ve already shown it to me about ten times.”

“No, it’s not about that, Hyung. Although, the kitten was pretty funny, it was wearing a sombrero hat. I mean, who would come up with such an idea?”

“You would,” said Jaebum, as if it was the most natural answer.

Jackson smiled, “you’re right. Such genius ideas need genius minds like mine.”

“That wasn’t my point, you idiot.”

Jackson ignored that remark. “Well, as I was going to tell you, Hyung-”

“What? Are you hungry again?”

“No.”

“Do you want me to see your latest dance?”

“Do you want me to dance for you? Okay.”

“No! Believe me, I’ve seen Bambam and Yugyeom do enough of that lately, while , which was… very disturbing.”

“Aww, the young ones just tried to be cute and cheer you up.”

“You call that cute? Which part of did you not understand? -.”

“Well, it cheered me up. But that’s not it.”

“Then what? What could it possibly be about? If it’s about the ing fan, Jackson, I swear to God! I put books under it just to position it higher for you, so you could feel its wind. Not even I can feel its coolness anymore! Do you know how hot I feel right now?”

“Hot enough to take your shirt off? Now, wouldn’t that be too chic and y?”

“Jackson,” the calmness in Jaebum’s voice sounded so menacing that Jackson was sure he was throwing a death-glare up through the bottom of the top-bunkbed.

“Just kidding. I noticed the books under the fan on the table when I entered the room, thank you, Hyung. But that’s not it.”

“Oh. Then what?”

“Could you please turn off the light?”

To his utter relief, Jaebum only sighed but stood up and switched it off before returning to his lower bunkbed.

“Thank you, Hyung. I appreciate your effort.”

A long silence followed before Jackson heard the murmured, “you’re welcome.”

Jaebum made Jackson not only realise how considerate Jaebum was of him, but also how considerate a person Mark was to always give his attention to Jackson and adjust to his needs while never asking for anything in return or voicing a complaint. All in all, Jaebum made him realise how much he really missed Mark.

Jackson felt awful. He hadn’t known how egoistic he had been. He wanted to be nice to his new roommate. He wanted to be that kind of person to Mark, too, the one who put Mark’s needs before himself, the considerate one Mark would turn to when he had sorrows to share.

Apparently, he wasn’t the only one who wanted to be that person.

Jackson was confused, he felt a little more enlightened after his talk with Jinyoung, but he still felt like a confused fool. At least five members of Got7 were in love with Mark, about Jinyoung, he still wasn’t sure. Though he asked Jinyoung whether he was dating Mark and Jinyoung denied it, it didn’t mean that Jinyoung didn’t have a crush. Above all, when Jackson asked him whether he liked Mark, Jinyoung said yes. He said he liked Jackson more, as well. Jinyoung saying that only made him more suspicious, it sounded like Jinyoung was cherishing his friendship more than his love and Jackson didn’t put it past him to be of the kind who withheld his own feelings right after his best friend confessed to him that the best friend was in love with the same person. It didn’t make sense otherwise, Jinyoung had to be infatuated at least, moreover, when there were so many signs that Mark liked him, too. Why else would Mark shove the door to Jinyoung’s bedroom open by force and destroy the barricade of plush toys that Jackson created only to step in, give Jackson’s hands on Jinyoung’s hips one of those glares before asking in the calmest voice, what the matter was, making Jackson’s blood freeze in his veins? If it weren’t for Jinyoung’s quick response that it was rude to burst into his bedroom without even knocking and that they were just having a heart to heart between friends, which was actually true but sounded more girlish than they intended it to be, Jackson wouldn’t know how to react while staying so vague. Mark looked unconvinced and unsatisfied with the answer but he quietly left after the two stood up from the bed, several feet apart and with Jackson’s hands safely hidden in his own back-pockets.

“Oh, my God,” Jinyoung mouthed the moment Mark was gone and he closed the door again.

“I think my heart just skipped a beat. Do you think he heard?” Jackson asked, dreading the answer.

“I don’t know,” Jinyoung said and Jackson pulled his hands out of his pockets to drive his fingers through his hair, messing it up in every direction. “Nah, I don’t think so.”

No matter how unconvincing Jinyoung sounded, he was proven to be right an hour later.

Jackson was packing his bag for a trip to China in his abandoned bedroom because of another TV related work appointment, which was less bedroom now and more of a walk-in open wardrobe with a suffocating amount of clothes, which also infested the two old bunkbeds, after they got rid of the insects-infestation that is, when Mark stepped in with only a towel around his waist and hair dripping wet from a fresh shower.

He was searching for something in the box next to the door, completely blind to Jackson’s presence for a moment, when he started muttering to himself.

“Where is it? Come on, I know he keeps it somewhere in here.”

One of his feet was tip-tapping on the spot in a very fast rhythm and his fingers were desperately moving inside the box, when Jackson comprehended what he was searching for and coughed because he couldn’t believe what he was witnessing.

It wasn’t even a weird coincidence, when they needed a change of clothes was one of the few occasions they met each other at their old shared bedroom, since it still held all of Mark’s belongings, too. So he had every right to be there, yet, he still apologised and Jackson was still shocked to see him.

“Oh, sorry, I didn’t expect you here…”

“No need to be,” said Jackson, gulping heavily. Mark had been working out lately and it started to show on his biceps and abs, magnets to Jackson’s eyes.

“I’ll just take some clothes and be gone,” said Mark, one hand holding onto the towel and another grabbing for a pair of loose pants from his top-bunkbed. He would look really cool and confident, if the tips of his ears didn’t turn red and he didn’t avoid eye-contact with Jackson.

“Mark, wait. Did you eat dinner yet?”

“Yeah, I ate with Jaebum and Yugyeom earlier.”

“Oh,” said Jackson. He was disappointed. His question usually was a synonym for “do you want to go out and have a meal with me,” but when Mark responded so boldly, he had little left to say.

“I was going to call you and Jinyoung along, you know… but you two were too busy with your “friendly heart to heart.””

He was forming air-quotes with one hand and Jackson didn’t know how to receive that. Was Mark seriously putting his jealousy on display? What kind of jealousy was that?

“Wow, that really bothered you, didn’t it?”

“Nope.”

Mark’s ears were completely red then and he turned to leave with his pants and another selected wide shirt but Jackson called him back.

He pulled a bottle from his recently packed bag and held it up in Mark’s field of vision, biting onto the inside of his cheek. “Were you searching for this?”

Mark’s eyes became wide as saucers and the redness of his ears flooded his face when he looked at Jackson, body frozen on the spot.

Jackson tried to put on a serious demeanour. “Really, when are you going to get yourself a bottle of shampoo?”

“I’m sorry, Ga Ga. This is the last time, I swear-”

There it was, the name that tore at Jackson’s heartstrings. He couldn’t help but throw the bottle and Mark unfroze to catch it, careful not to let his towel drop.

“And is it really so hard to collect your clothes before entering the shower? Stop flaunting your perfect body,” Jackson said, trying to keep his eyes low on his bag. He felt attacked by all the ness and it was injustice in the worst form that Mark’s abs were flawlessly chiselled even after a meal, while his lower getting self-esteem started telling him that his own abs wouldn’t look like that with all the training in the world.

“’M not perfect.” Jackson liked how Mark’s voice got all shy again, it was part of the reason why Jackson always about his body. “You know how I am, showering is a spontaneous decision most of the time.”

“Too well,” said Jackson.

“I’m sorry but I didn’t know you would be in here,” Mark repeated, “to catch me ,” he added as an afterthought. This was the second stage of Mark’s shyness, he got defensive and Jackson liked even that part about him, because it gave Jackson opportunity to further .

“What, you think I did it on purpose now? Lying in ambush for you?”

“No, of course not,” Mark said, a little too highly dramatic and Jackson didn’t know if he should take him seriously, so he replied just as highly dramatic in jest.

“What impudence! Excuse you, but I was packing for China.”

“Oh,” said Mark, humour gone. “You’re leaving again?” He sounded disappointed but Jackson didn’t want to think too much of it.

“Yes,” said Jackson and finished packing. In the silence that followed, he counted the droplets of water from Mark’s hair that fell to the floor. The amount got less and less, the splash sounds fewer by the time Mark spoke again.

“When are you coming back?”

Mark’s chest was sporting goose bumps when Jackson looked up.

He took another deep gulp. “In a few days. Hey, maybe we can have a meal together when I come back?”

His stomach started to growl just at the thought.

Mark smiled. “Sure.”

Jackson stood up and stretched before carrying his packed bag to the door for the next morning-flight. “Okay, can you put the shampoo back into the side-pocket once you’re done using it? Thanks.”

He put the bag down near Mark’s feet and was about to walk past him, when Mark cornered him against the doorframe.

“On one condition,” Mark said, more confident than before and surprising Jackson when the hand that was holding onto the towel all the while hit the frame above Jackson’s head. Mark held his whole attention all of a sudden, making Jackson sink back against the wood in total intimidation.

“Wh-what are you Kabe-donning me for?” Jackson blinked through his eyelashes several times to meet Mark’s intense stare. It was his turn to feel his cheeks flushing and he had no idea why this was happening.

“Tell me what you and Jinyoung talked about earlier.”

The renewed disappointment made the blood stop flooding Jackson’s face. “That’s it? That’s what you want to know?”

Mark rolled his eyes, as if the answer were so obvious. “Yeah.”

“Well, we snogged.”

“You did not!”

“How do you know? The door was closed for a reason.”

“You do realise that Jinyoung’s door is see-through, right?”

“So you admit that you were peeping? Good thing that I put up a barricade.”

“Of plush toys, Jackson. Really?” He looked at Jackson, as if he couldn’t believe him.

“At least they warned me when you kicked them all over the place. Poor Tinky Winky, Winnie Pooh and Pikachu. Oh, my God, how could you? One is your spirit animal and you got your name from the other!”

Mark shook his head. “What the heck? It is not and I did not.”

“Shut up, Markie Pooh.”

Mark sighed in exasperation. “That wasn’t Winnie Pooh. Jinyoung doesn’t even have a Winnie Pooh.”

“He does. That big teddy bear you kicked with your left food was Winnie the Pooh.”

“It wasn’t Pooh, it was just a plain teddy bear and I didn’t kick it on purpose!”

“But Jinyoung calls him Winnie the Pooh!”

“He does not.”

“He does! You should apologise to Pooh and his friends.”

“Not to Jinyoung?”

“It wasn’t Jinyoung you kicked around.”

“Whatever, I’ll apologise to him later.”

“To them,” Jackson emphasised.

“To them. What did you two talk about?”

“Are we back to this again?”

“We’re still at this. What did you two talk about? Try not to divert from the topic this time.”

“That’skindofdifficultwhenmymindgoesblankwithyourwetbodyalloverme,” he mumbled.

Mark looked amused. “What?”

“Nothing.” Jackson flushed, what did he just say? Did he really just say what he thought he was saying?

“Jackson.”

“I can’t tell you.”

“Why?”

“Why does it bother you so much? Since when do you care about Jinyoung so much that you two can’t keep a secret from each other?”

“It’s not that.” Mark hesitated as he bit into his lips.

Jackson took another gulp at the sight. So close. They were so close that Jackson could feel Mark’s body-heat radiating off of him. “Then what?”

“It’s just that… you never keep secrets from me.”

Jackson had another one of those rare moments, in which his heart stuttered. He took a whole minute to recover. “What are you talking about? I have a lot of secrets. I’m a mysterious man.”

Mark gave him a sceptic look. “No, you’re not.”

Jackson finally took the courage to shove him away from his hovering position, even though Jackson had to touch skin for a short second and it made his voice pitch an octave higher. “I do have my secrets. You’d be surprised.” Namely, loving you.

“Keep telling that yourself.” Mark was flashing a row of perfect white teeth that did things in Jackson’s imagination he wouldn’t ever dare to speak out loud and the thought came so out of nowhere that it surprised himself. He usually never spent a second to think about Mark’s teeth like that.

Jackson had to leave before the situation escalated, fast.

“Whatever, keep the shampoo. I’ll keep my and Jinyoung’s secret.”

Mark pulled him back when Jackson was about to pass him by slipping away from the door frame, this time holding his hands up, clothes and shampoo discarded on the floor. “But why?”

Mark looked desperate as he let go of one of Jackson’s hands to drive it through his wet hair. “Jackson, are you mad at me or something?”

Jackson swallowed through the lump in his throat. “No.”

“Then, did I do anything to hurt you?” He didn’t know if it was a conscious action but Mark’s thumb was over the pulse-point on his wrist. It was calming enough to loosen his tongue.

He sighed. “I miss you, is all.” He pointed the forefinger of his free hand right at Mark’s chest before swinging his arm down to his side.

“Aww,” said Mark in that high-pitched tone he reserved for overly cute moments. “Me, too.”

“Really? Is it me or my shampoo?”

“Hmm. Both,” said Mark, biting into his lip again.

“Stop doing that, you’ll draw blood,” said Jackson and only realised saying it when Mark blushed a beautiful shade. “Then, why aren’t you coming back to our room?”

“You know why.” Mark was staring right into his eyes, former shyness all gone.

Mark’s irises were so bright and clear that Jackson got lost and forgot it. “Tell me again.”

“Well, I’ve got a new room with Youngjae. I can’t leave him just like that now.”

“Wow, but it’s okay to abandon me without a reason?” said Jackson in the most hurtful tone he could manage.

“I didn’t abandon you, you know that. And without a reason? Please, how many times do I have to tell you it was because of the insects!”

“You mean the flies?”

“The small, flying insects.”

“The fruit flies?”

“Was it called Drosophila?”

“Whatever, who left the window open?”

Mark looked seriously annoyed then, pointing his own finger at Jackson’s heart. “Don’t start with that again, I apologised a million times for that!”

“But the insects are gone since the SISQO guy came, that’s not a valid reason anymore.”

Mark laughed in his face. “SISQO is the singer. You mean CESSCO?”

“CISCO?”

“It’s CESSCO.”

“Whatever.”

“That was not the only reason and you know that. It’s your endless stuff that’s lying around everywhere. Look, there’s not a single free space in here!”

Jackson did look around, following Mark’s hand, it did look like a bomb of his clothes had detonated.

“I told you we could clean up.”

“We did, remember? Five days later, it looked the same as before.”

“I can clean up again,” Jackson knew he was begging by then but he didn’t care.

“It’s useless, you just have to much stuff and too little space for it. Besides, you have Jaebum as a roommate now, what are you going to tell him?”

“Don’t worry, he’ll be happy when he gets rid of me.”

“Don’t say that, he likes you. He likes every member.” Jackson didn’t know whether to be sad that Mark was defending Jaebum or to be happy that Mark did stand up for their members when someone talked bad about them. “And I like Youngjae, he’s uncomplicated as a roommate.”

That one stung. It proved Jackson’s assumptions and raised his fears. “I guess I’m too complicated now, sorry.” He hung his head low, removed himself from Mark by a little force and left the doorframe.

“Hey, Jackson, wait! I didn’t mean it like that, , I’m sorry!”

This time, when Mark tried to catch up to him and hold him back, Jackson didn’t let him.

Jackson closed the door to Jaebum’s and his bedroom behind himself and knew exactly that Mark wouldn’t enter in his stark state. He could finish his shower then; it was better like that because his body started shaking since a while ago.

“What’s this noise? Jackson, is that you?”

“Yes, Hyung,” he said with a still rapidly beating heart.

“Can you, please, turn off the light?”

“Of course, Hyung,” he said and climbed up the top-bunkbed soon after, throwing himself upon the much too warm mattress.

“Is everything all right, Jackson?”

“Yes, why?”

“You said “of course, Hyung” so quickly.”

“Can’t I be nice?”

“For once?”

“I mean all the time.”

“Sure. What about your video of the day? Don’t you want to show me?”

Jackson sighed. “Hyung, can’t we just, please, skip all that tonight?”

“Okay, what’s wrong, Jackson? Now you’re really worrying me.”

“Nothing. I’m just tired and want to sleep.”

“I know and I know you have to wake up early for your flight to China tomorrow. I just want you to come down here and talk to me for a bit. Come on, my bed is much cooler than yours. It must be warm up there.”

Jackson resisted for a whole minute but Jaebum was right and the offer was too tempting. The damn cool wind of the fan missed to reach him again.

Eventually, it was the mental stress that came with being too observant lately but that Jackson could gladly go without, which made him take a rash decision he almost immediately regretted. He talked to Jaebum that very same night, as well.

He climbed into Jaebum’s side and knew it was a mistake to come down when he realised he forgot an important fact; the human body was an endless battery of heat.

Jaebum, to his surprise, sounded happy for the first in a long time. “Now, that’s more like it.”

“Uhm, Hyung. Don’t you think it’s too hot for a late-night cuddle?”

“What, you don’t like me hugging you? Wow, Youngjae never complained.”

“That’s not it, it’s just too hot.”

“Oh, wait for the fan to show its effect. It will cool you down,” said Jaebum and relaxed into his side, putting his arm back around Jackson’s waist.

“Wait, how many times did you do this with Youngjae? Do I even want to know?”

Jaebum pinched his side.

“Ouch!”

“Shut up. I was just hugging him from time to time. Because he’s huggable and cute.”

“Ew.”

Jaebum pinched him again and pulled his arm back from Jackson’s waist. “Shut up. I hate you. I miss Youngjae, he never said a word.”

“I was just joking,” Jackson laughed, amused at how childish Jaebum could be. “Come back, do it again, I won’t complain this time.”

“Only if you really don’t have anything against it.”

“I really don’t,” Jackson confirmed.

“All right,” said Jaebum and Jackson pulled Jaebum’s arm around him.

“So you’re a hugger,” said Jackson and Jaebum sighed in contentment. For a long time both said nothing and the fan rotating and doing its cooling magic was the only sound in the dark room. “I think I understand you better now, Hyung.”

“I will deny it if you ever tell anybody. So what’s bothering you lately?”

“You said you miss Youngjae as a roommate, right?”

“Yeah?”

“Well, I miss Mark,” said Jackson, his heart hammering in the silence after the confession.

“Ahh, I get it now.”

“You do?”

“Yeah, I know exactly how you feel. You’re hurt.”

“Right?”

“You feel abandoned.”

“That’s exactly what I’ve been telling! High five.”

Jaebum checked with his hand, then held it and connected their fingers, just like Jinyoung did only hours ago.

“Forget those two, they have left us. Why should we feel miserable?”

“Yeah, why should we?”

“Let’s make the best of the situation. Let’s show them that we can be happy without them, too.” Jackson whole-heartedly agreed. He liked Jaebum’s spirit.

“I love you, Hyung. Thanks for the advice,” said Jackson and was ready to sleep. “I’m sorry I was a pain in the all this time.”

“Me too. Sleep now, you got to wake up in a few hours.”

“I know. Good night, Hyung.”

Jaebum surprised him yet again with his next action. He kissed Jackson’s forehead. “Good night.”

Jackson felt a strong wave of affection for Jaebum that he hadn’t felt in a long time.

“Hey, Hyung, can I ask you another question?”

“Shoot.”

“Mark is your best friend, right? Is he still the member you would date, if you had to date someone in the group?”

“Hmm, maybe. He’s an indecisive and quiet person so he needs someone like me to release him from the decision-making and talking-stress. It is more of a help-offering for the person who needs me the most and who happens to be my best friend.”

“And he’s easy on the eyes.”

Jaebum laughed. “That, he is.”

“Hyung, have you ever dated a member?”

Jaebum pulled his hands back and froze. “That is another question. I only allowed you one.”

“Wait, what? Oh, my God, you did?” Jackson’s world started spinning. He mentally went through all the possible members’ names.

“Good night, Jackson.” Jaebum turned and faced the wall.

“But, but, but!”

“Good. Night.” He sounded menacing and Jackson immediately went quiet.

Jaebum started hugging himself and Jackson’s heart broke for him, it appeared to be a painful story. Jackson put a warm palm between the wings of Jaebum’s shoulders. “Good night, Hyung,” he whispered.

Jackson’s mind stuck on three members’ names. Was it Youngjae, the cute member Jaebum used to hug to sleep? Was it Jinyoung with whom he was in JJ Project and spent the most time with? Or was it Mark, the member he said he would date on several occasions, the most recent being minutes ago?

He needs someone like me to release him from the decision-making and talking-stress…

Oh, God, what did it mean? Jackson kept thinking.

It is more of a help-offering…

Was it a help-offering? Did it happen?

Jackson hoped with all his heart that it didn’t happen, that it wasn’t his Mark.

Great, he was already thinking of him as his Mark.

He was doomed.

Jaebum just taught him a third lesson; he overthrew everything Jackson thought to know about the skills of observation like a row of bowling pins. Ultimately, Jaebum taught him that Jackson actually knew nothing about observation, if he had missed such a big issue.

The trip to China came and went but Jackson could barely think about anything else. What surprised him, was, that Mark was still awake in the middle of the night when Jackson arrived and he was more than ready to go out for the promised meal.

He seemed nervous and was tiptoeing the whole time he searched for and collected his wallet and mobile phone.

“It’s on me this time,” Mark said with a smile in his direction.

Jackson smiled back carefully, even though his heart was pumping wildly and he wanted to break dance despite his exhausted body.

They left in silence and walked to the closest 24/7 Samgyeopsal restaurant, sitting at the table in their favourite corner. They placed their order quickly and Jackson thanked Mark for offering to pay this time.

“I appreciate it, man. You’ve no idea how tired and hungry I am.”

Mark was unusually still very nervous and drumming his fingers on the table top, looking left and right. He was wearing a black snapback and turned it around so it threw a shadow over his eyes.

“So, since you’re letting me do all the talking again, let me tell you about my trip to China.”

“It wasn’t me.” Mark interrupted.

“What? No Mark, it’s not one of those nights you’re allowed to talk in arcane short and connectionless sentences. I just told you I’m ing tired.”

“The guy JB dated. It wasn’t me.”

Jackson’s surprises of the night didn’t end, apparently.