Their comeback was a roaring success, all tolled. Bobby could tell, despite the positive outcome of their efforts, that Hanbin wasn’t sleeping again. Or eating. At least, he mused privately, Hanbin was still remembering to shower often enough.

One night, hours after a grueling practice, Bobby returned from the gym to find Hanbin asleep in his bed. Not particularly strange, Bobby washed up, changed clothing, and crept into the bed, next to Hanbin. He curled around the younger boy, comfortable for having him in his arms, and allowed himself to kiss Hanbin delicately on the back of his neck. The leader stirred, voice escaping his throat in a high whine. Bobby snuggled closer, warmth emanating from between the two of them. He waited until he knew Hanbin was entirely asleep again to shift into a more comfortable position. He relaxed, finally, and let sleep take him over.

This became routine quickly. Bobby found himself sharing a bed with Hanbin every single night for the following week. That week turned into a month, and after that, Bobby stopped counting. He let himself enjoy the warmth and comfort of having someone in his bed, of sharing a small space with another person. Hanbin, for his part, acted like the bed never had actually belonged to Bobby alone, and as if he had always belonged right there, next to his sleeping best friend. Their bandmates noticed, slowly but surely.

“Bobby hyung?” June called out, one morning over breakfast. He waited until the barely conscious rapper nodded to him before he cleared his throat and lifted his shoulders. Bobby noticed the shifting atmosphere, and met June’s eyes.

“What’s wrong?” He asked, fear tinging his voice. Despite the negative emotion being present, the touch of humor that Bobby’s words always held was also there. “Are you okay?” He asked, eyes ghosting over June’s visible body. June nodded slowly, eyes shifting away from his hyung.

“What’s the deal with our leader?” He finally asked, after clearing his throat again. Bobby let his face break out into a relieved grin. His shoulders relaxed.

“What-” Before he could ask what the younger meant, a sleepy Hanbin emerged from their recently shared bedroom, blankets cradled around him like they so often were. He walked slowly, his normally bare feet covered by Bobby’s favorite house slippers. He meandered over to the counter, and Bobby’s eyes followed him, as if they had a mind of their own. He kept his gaze on him as Hanbin frowned and raised a blanket covered hand up to scratch his head. Bobby stood, pulling at Hanbin’s waist and directing him to the steaming coffee pot.

“Your favorite.” He murmured, quietly, the way Hanbin preferred while he was still sleepy. The boy looked up, to meet Bobby’s eyes, and then over his shoulder to give June a nasty look, simply for existing before Hanbin had fully woken up. Bobby giggled and grabbed Hanbin’s hand, intertwining their fingers gently. Hanbin grinned dopily and snuggled against Bobby’s side.”This instant coconut is going to kill you one of these days.” He said, jokingly, and Hanbin sighed audibly, but refused to remove himself from Bobby’s side. The older boy grabbed a massive mug and filled it to the brim with the sweet American import, smiling when Hanbin made vague grabby hands at the warm cup. He pushed the boy towards the table, holding the cup in one hand. When Hanbin made like he was about to sit down, Bobby made a quiet noise of refusal. Hanbin sighed and pulled the blanket off his shoulders and handed it to Bobby, who in turn handed him the coffee cup. Hanbin sat down, across from June, and inhaled the steam coming from the large cup of coffee. He curled around it, and shut his eyes and he waited for it to cool. June looked up to find Bobby staring back at him. He raised an eyebrow, and gestured for June to follow him.

“Hyung?” June asked, as they entered Bobby and Hanbin’s domain. Bobby nodded, listening but not replying yet. “What’s up with our leader… and you?” He tried to carefully word his question, instead finding himself feeling uncomfortable.

“What do you mean?” Bobby replied, while pulling the blanket that HAnbin had stolen back onto their bed. “Hanbin-ah and I are great. He’s just a little stressed out from our comeback. And you know he loves cuddles.” Bobby replied, eyes still not meeting June’s. The younger snorted, giving up.

“Fine. You two aren’t acting weird or anything. Okay.” He rolled his eyes, arms crossed, and stormed out of the room. Bobby sighed, hand coming up to rub at the back of his neck. Behind him, he felt Hanbin appear before he saw him. He turned and was met with Hanbin looking vaguely guilty.

“I’m sorry if I’m being weird.” He hesitated even saying that much, and Bobby felt his heart lurch.

“You’re not weird at all, Hanbin-ah. You’re perfect. You’re so strong for them and they don’t even realize that even our tiger leader needs someone to lean on, too. Don’t worry about it.” Bobby said, voice stern and loud enough to be heard in most of the dorm. He hoped all the members heard it. Hanbin smiled, hand still curled around his cup, and leaned forward, into Bobby. The older ran a hand through his hair and down the back of his neck, thoughts of protecting Hanbin running rampant in his mind.