Description: An underground streetfighter saves a penniless artist. Fluff. (4514 WordCount)

Minhyuk sighed to himself. The landlord he'd just asked had refused him, just like all the others. He was running out of time and needed to find a place to stay soon - the month was almost over and Minhyuk hadn't had enough to pay rent for a while now. He was lucky his current landlord had let him stay for so long as he tried to find another place. As an artist, money didn't come regularly, and it hadn't come at all for some time. But he'd find a way, even if potential landlords didn't believe him.

The alley he was walking down was narrow and dark, but it was familiar enough to Minhyuk. He still couldn't help the shiver down his spine though when he saw two dark shapes making their way down the alley towards him. He considered turning around right away and taking a detour back to his apartment, but then again, anyone would look scary walking down an alley this late at night. He forgot about his own pink-dyed hair shining like a beacon in the moonlight.

If he were close enough, Minhyuk would've seen the two men glance at each other after seeing him and smirk. And when he was close enough to see their dangerous expressions, it was too late.

One man slammed him against the wall and held an arm against his neck while the other flipped a knife into his hand.

"Alright, what have you got?" the one holding the knife demanded.

"I swear I don't have anything!" Minhyuk insisted.

"No way, that's a lie." He poked Minhyuk's chest with the blade.

Minhyuk's eyes widened. "No! Please-"

"Hey!" a voice shouted. "What's going on?"

The two men turned around and Minhyuk looked around them. A tall, muscular man with spiked brown hair stood in the alley with an angry look on his face. Minhyuk had no idea who he was, but the two men clearly recognized him and cursed. The man started walking towards them, and Minhyuk let out a sigh of relief at being saved.

But suddently he felt a sharp pain in his stomach and warm liquid soaking his shirt as the man pulled the knife back out and the two shoved past the other man and disappeared into the darkness of the alley.

Minhyuk felt the strength to stand leaving him, seeping out of his wound, and he sagged against the wall, sliding down to the ground. But the man ran over and caught him before he could hit the ground.

"Are you okay?" The man asked.

Minhyuk gave him a look and a grimace of pain. "What... do you... think?" he wheezed out.

The man's eyes flicked from Minhyuk's lips up to his pink hair and back down to his eyes. "You look fine," he said, forcing a smile.

Minhyuk let out a weak laugh that was more of a cough and then promptly slumped over in the man's arms as his vision went dark.

~~~~~~~

Minhyuk woke to darkness. He was warm, though, and snuggled in a bed with a bunch of blankets. He was confused for a moment, until pain stung his stomach, bringing back the memories of being stabbed in an alley and being saved by a stranger. He breathed slowly to avoid aggravating his wound and mulled over the events in his mind. The last thing he remembered was the man holding him off the ground, a kind smile on his full lips that crinkled the corners of his deep chocolate brown eyes.

The bed felt unfamiliar, and Minhyuk didn't know where he was, but at the very least he was pretty sure he was safe. He felt the need to go to the bathroom though, so he gingerly swung his legs out from under the blanket and carefully stood. With one hand stretched out before him, Minhyuk started forwards to where he thought the door might be. He didn't take three steps before he tripped on something and fell.

He landed on something lumpy. Minhyuk stopped to catch his breath and felt his stomach. It didn't feel sticky, so he hadn't bled out of the bandage yet, but the wound was throbbing in pain.

The lump beneath him shifted and let out a grunt. Gentle fingers patted him, and once the man realized Minhyuk had fallen on top of him, he sat up and strong arms lifted Minhyuk to his feet. He slowly led Minhyuk back to the bed and leaned him against it.

"Hold on a second," his sleepy voice murmured.

Minhyuk nodded even though the man couldn't see him.

A few moments later, light flooded the room and Minhyuk squinted against the brightness. The man stood in the doorway to what Minhyuk assumed was his bedroom. He was shirtless, and Minhyuk's cheeks turned pink as he glanced down.

The man rushed over, rubbing sleep out of his eyes and grabbing a pair of glasses.

"What happened? Are you okay?"

Minhyuk nodded dumbly, trying to keep his eyes off the man's thick arms and toned abs. "I just got up... to go to the bathroom, and I think I tripped over you."

"Does it hurt?" the man asked, lightly prodding his stomach with his finger.

"A little," Minhyuk admitted.

The man nodded. "Okay. Well the bathroom is over there, and I'll check the wound when you come out."

He pointed Minhyuk to the bathroom.

When Minhyuk got out, the man was sitting on the bed with a medical kit beside him. He patted the space next to him, and Minhyuk sat.

"Can you take off your shirt for me?"

"W-what...?" Minhyuk stuttered.

The man noticed must've noticed his blush, since he quickly backtracked. "I mean, just to make it easier to take off the bandage. Of course, you don't have to..."

Minhyuk held his shirt up with his hands.

"That works too." The man carefully unwrapped the bandage around Minhyuk's stomach. "...I'm Hyunwoo, by the way."

Minhyuk blinked. "Minhyuk."

A corner of Hyunwoo's lips turned up in a half smile. "Nice to meet you, Minhyuk."

The bandage came off, and Minhyuk saw a short row of stitches he must've been out for.

"Hyunwoo, is this place yours?" he asked.

"Yep," Hyunwoo said. "After you passed out, from shock or blood loss I'm not sure, I brought you here to my apartment and stitched you up. You were out but I gave you a bit of painkillers just in case. Then I put you in my bed and lay down here," he pointed to a blanket on the floor, "and then you fell on top of me and woke me up."

Hyunwoo wiped some dried blood off Minhyuk's stomach with a wet towel and wrapped him back up in a fresh bandage. Minhyuk pulled his shirt back down.

"It's still 4 am, so you should go back to sleep," Hyunwoo said.

"This is your bed?" Minhyuk asked.

Hyunwoo nodded.

"And you slept on the floor?"

Hyunwoo nodded again.

"I can sleep on the floor, you should have your bed back."

Hyunwoo smiled and shook his head. "It's fine, I don't mind. You're injured." He went to turn off the lights. "Now get some sleep."

Hyunwoo settled himself down on the floor, shifting a few times and then laying still. A few moments later, Minhyuk moved to the side of the bed, getting as close to the edge as he could without falling off.

"Hyunwoo?"

"Hmm?"

"Come sleep on your bed, there's enough room."

Hyunwoo hesitated for a while but didn't argue against it.

Soon after, Minhyuk felt the bed dip as Hyunwoo slid under the blanket beside him. The bed was just large enough for the two to brush shoulders. Minhyuk was thankful that Hyunwoo couldn't see his face in the dark when his knee accidentally bumped into Hyunwoo's leg. He turned his back to Hyunwoo and moved forward a bit so that there was a small gap of air between them.

Minhyuk clutched the blanket around his chest so that he wouldn't fall off in the middle of the night, but when he woke up, his hand was unclenched, palm down on something large and warm. It moved up and down slowly, raising and lowering his head along with it. Minhyuk froze and flushed when he realized he was laying on Hyunwoo's bare chest. Hyunwoo took deep, slow breaths and had a single, strong arm wrapped around Minhyuk, holding him against his chest.

Minhyuk shifted and tried to turn around so he could maneuver himself out of Hyunwoo's embrace, but his arm was heavy and wouldn't budge. He didn't think he could get out without waking Hyunwoo, and the dull ache of his wound made him close his eyes and sink deeper into Hyunwoo's embrace.

But however hard he tried, Minhyuk couldn't get back to sleep. Hyunwoo hadn't woken up from Minhyuk's squirming, and the man's slow breathing occassionally rustled the hair at the top of Minhyuk's head.

Minhyuk opened his eyes and just watched Hyunwoo's chest rise and fall and listened to his smooth heartbeat.

The room gradually filled with more light, and eventually Hyunwoo woke up.

As soon as Minhyuk heard the man's breathing change, he closed his eyes and pretended to be asleep. He did not want to face Hyunwoo when he was shirtless and Minhyuk had just been cuddled up next to him like a lovesick puppy.

Hyunwoo blinked in surprise at seeing Minhyuk snuggled into his chest but, thinking the other man was still fast asleep, gently eased Minhyuk off his chest and arm, rubbed the sleep out of his eyes, and got out of bed.

Minhyuk waited a few minutes and then swung his legs out from under the blanket, shivering a bit as he left the warmth of the bed. He wandered out of the door to where the kitchen seemed to be, following his nose.

He wished he'd stayed in bed longer though when he saw Hyunwoo, still shirtless, standing with his back to him, cooking what looked like eggs in a pan. But before he could go back, Hyunwoo turned around and saw him. He smiled at Minhyuk like it was completely normal to be scrambling eggs shirtless in the morning.

"Good morning." Hyunwoo showed Minhyuk the eggs in his pan. "Hungry?"

Minhyuk nodded, eyes fixed to the floor. After a short while, Hyunwoo noticed his discomfort and realized why Minhyuk kept his eyes on the ground.

"Should I go put on a shirt?" Hyunwoo asked. "Sorry, I'm used to not wearing one and I never really have people around..." He smiled awkwardly.

Minhyuk watched the eggs until Hyunwoo came back with a tank top on. It wasn't much better and still showcased his strong arms, but at least now Minhyuk could maintain eye contact without Hyunwoo's chest and abs diverting his attention. Even if he could see the outlines through the thin, white tank top.

Hyunwoo poured the eggs into two plates and set them on the table. They ate breakfast, and Minhyuk remarked on how good the eggs were.

Then Hyunwoo asked, "Can I check your stitches?"

Minhyuk nodded an affirmation.

They sat on Hyunwoo's bed, and Hyunwoo unwrapped the bandage around him. Then he cleaned the area with a damp cloth and rewrapped the bandage. "You were lucky," he told Minhyuk. "The knife glanced off a rib. You should be better in a week or two."

Minhyuk looked up at Hyunwoo, relieved. "Thank you so much... How do you know all of this? Are you a doctor?"

Hyunwoo shook his head and chuckled. "Far from it, I'm a streetfighter. I've had to patch myself up a few times, and I've learned a few things in the process."

"Do you have a day job?" Miinhyuk asked.

"No, it's all I do. It's a tough business though." Hyunwoo looked at Minhyuk's wound. "I wouldn't recommend it for you," he teased.

Minhyuk gave a small smile.

"What were you doing in that alley last night?" Hyunwoo wondered.

Minhyuk explained how he had gone to meet with another landlord and was walking back to his apartment when he thought he could use the alley as a shortcut. "I'd been through the alley before a few times, and nothing ever happened."

Hyunwoo raised his eyebrows. "You must've been really lucky those times," he remarked. "Because that's probably the most dangerous alley you could've picked. One of the most feared gangs in the city conducts their business around that alley, and there's been mugging, , murders... some things I've seen that I can't unsee." Hyunwoo shook his head at the memories. "I go through every once in a while because they know not to mess with me. You're not the first person I've helped."

Minhyuk's jaw hung open at the information. He'd never known about his close brushes with danger each time he went down that alley. He could only thank his luck that Hyunwoo was there when he ran into the thugs. He didn't want to think about how much worse it could have been if Hyunwoo hadn't arrived when he did. He tried not to imagine himself bleeding out on the ground, barely holding himself up against the wall.

Hyunwoo rubbed his back - he must've noticed his empty look. "Don't worry, you're fine now. Just be careful." He offered Minhyuk a handsome smile with his plump lips.

Minhyuk subconsiously leaned into the back rub. His wound had an occasional sharp pulse but had mostly faded into a dull throbbing, as long as he didn't bend his waist too much or overstretch his stitches. It felt good, just feeling Hyunwoo's warm palm along his back. Nevermind the fact that he had just met the man yesterday. They sat like that for a few minutes before Hyunwoo broke the silence.

"I have a fight today."

Minhyuk nodded in acknowledgment.

"Do you have a place to stay?" Hyunwoo asked.

Minhyuk hesitated for a moment. "Yeah but-" he cut himself off. He still had access to his apartment, but he only had two more days to pay his rent. He knew there was no way he was going to get the money, so he was going to get kicked out. But Hyunwoo had done enough for him already. Minhyuk didn't want to bring him into his problems. "Yes."

But Hyunwoo already noticed the slip. "But what?"

Sighing, Minhyuk explained his current living situation. "I've got a place to stay, but I'll pretty much be homeless in a few days."

"Oh. Well I have an extra room," Hyunwoo said matter-of-factly.

Minhyuk stared at him dumbly.

"It's currently a workout room, but I can make some room for a bed or an air mattress." Hyunwoo paused. "Or you can move into my room."

Shocked that Hyunwoo would even consider taking him in when they had only met the day before, Minhyuk finally got his mouth to work. "But... why?" He quickly backtracked, not wanting to offend Hyunwoo. "That's really nice, but you don't know me. Why would you just offer up your apartment to me?"

Hyunwoo shrugged. "Why not? You seem like a really nice guy, and if it turns out you're not, I can take care of myself," he explained. "I'm not undefeated for nothing. And it would really bother me if I just left you out in the streets. I just can't do that."

They chatted until Hyunwoo had to leave for his fight, and when he left, he insisted Minhyuk stay in his apartment - "just in case". Minhyuk gradually came to the conclusion that Hyunwoo was an extremely kind and caring person, but also clueless sometimes. Who left a stranger alone inside their apartment for a few hours? Or for that matter, who invited a stranger to live in their apartment the day after they met? Hyunwoo was lucky Minhyuk wasn't a thief.

He sat on Hyunwoo's bed for a while but gradually got bored, so Minhyuk wandered around Hyunwoo's apartment, not snooping too much. He didn't want to be rude, even if Hyunwoo wasn't there. The man had all but taken him in, and Minhyuk wouldn't violate his trust instantly.

Hyunwoo's apartment had basically four rooms. The kitchen blended into the small living room that contained a table with two chairs. The one bathroom in the apartment was connected to Hyunwoo's bedroom. And true to his word, Hyunwoo had a fourth workout room. A shiny mirror made up half of one wall, and there was a treadmill, weightlifting bench, and a few racks of other equipment Minhyuk wasn't familiar with. He spent a few minutes walking at a slow pace on the treadmill but stopped as soon as his midsection complained. He didn't know how long it would take for a stab wound to heal, but he bet there couldn't have been much progress after a single day.

Minhyuk wasn't sure when Hyunwoo would be back, but he figured he'd be back soon since it'd already been three hours since Hyunwoo had left. Hyunwoo had only had an apple before he left. "You can't fight on an empty stomach, but you can't fight on a full one either," he had said when Minhyuk asked if the apple was enough. Hyunwoo was probably going to be hungry when he got back, so Minhyuk hunted around the fridge for something he could cook.

Back in his own apartment, Minhyuk had survived practically on packets of ramen alone. All he needed to do was pour the dried noodles into a bowl and add hot water. Occasionally, he'd have some fruit, but his fridge was mostly empty. But Hyunwoo's fridge was stocked full of vegetables and meat.

Minhyuk ran his eyes over the forest in Hyunwoo's fridge and then picked out a few green stalks. Then he found a package of ramen in the cupboard and grinned. This he could work with.

He filled a pot halfway with water and set it to boil. As the water heated up, he chopped the vegetables into tiny bits. He swept these into the pot and gently dropped in the brick of dried ramen. He had no idea how to cook meat, and he didn't want to risk giving Hyunwoo food poisoning, so Hyunwoo would just have to be satisfied with the vegetarian ramen. It was what Minhyuk ate on a daily basis anyway.

He found a few sauce bottles on the counter and poured in what he thought was a good amount of each. He'd never used anything but salt to spice up his ramen, but Hyunwoo had all this, so he might as well use it. Why would Hyunwoo have it if he didn't like it?

Minhyuk picked up the ladle he'd found in the cutlery drawer and dipped it into the broth. He brought it to his lips, but before he could taste it, there was a loud thump like something had crashed against the apartment's front door. Minhyuk jumped, and the hot soup sloshed over the ladle and splashed onto the ground.

Then there was the sound of a key in the lock, and Minhyuk's thumping heart slowed a bit. It was probably Hyunwoo, unless someone else had the key or had stolen it from Hyunwoo, which Minhyuk really hoped hadn't happened.

But a few anxious seconds later, the door swung open and Hyunwoo stumbled through the doorway. Minhyuk sighed in relief but in a breath at the man's condition.

Hyunwoo was clutching his side, clearly in pain. He closed the door with a bit of difficulty and limped towards his bedroom. Minhyuk gasped when he saw his face. Hyunwoo was bleeding heavily from various cuts on his face and taking shallow breaths. Light bruises ran down his arms. Minhyuk followed behind as Hyunwoo entered the bathroom and turned the water on in the sink.

"Oh my god, Hyunwoo, are you okay?" Minhyuk asked.

Hyunwoo turned to him and managed a smile. "I'll be fine. It's just a bit painful right now."

"I thought you were undefeated," Minhyuk teased.

Hyunwoo rolled his eyes. "I still am. Tough fight though."

"Are all your fights like this?"

"No, I was just caught off guard for a split second," Hyunwoo explained.

Minhyuk watched as Hyunwoo wrapped a long bandage tightly around his ribs. He twisted his torso to test his mobility and groaned in pain. Then he turned his attention to the cuts on his face, which were not bleeding as much as before but still oozing the thick crimson liquid.

"Here, let me." Minhyuk grabbed some paper towels and a box of bandaids. He dabbed at Hyunwoo's face with the paper towels, trying to be as gentle as possible. He wiped Hyunwoo's forehead first, pasting a bandaid over the cut on the tan skin above his right eyebrow. He ran the paper towel down the bridge of Hyunwoo's strong nose and along his sharp jawline, and finally wiped away a spot of red on the corner of Hyunwoo's pink lips.

Hyunwoo's gaze never left Minhyuk's face as Minhyuk cleared the gore from his face. "You're cute," he said suddenly.

Minhyuk jerked back. "What?! What do you mean?"

"I mean you're cute," Hyunwoo repeated nonchalantly. "When you're concentrating you make these cute faces." He scrunched up his face and stuck his tongue out a bit to mimic Minhyuk's expression.

Minhyuk blushed and playfully swatted at Hyunwoo's face with the paper towel. He draped the towel over Hyunwoo's head, covering his eyes, and carefully placed a bandaid over the first cut. "You'd be handsome if you weren't so beat up right now," he mumbled.

Hyunwoo didn't reply, but Minhyuk saw his lips curve upwards.

"Thanks," Hyunwoo said when Minhyuk finished bandaging up his face.

"It's the least I can do, after you saved me in the alley last night," Minhyuk pointed out. "I also made dinner," he added hesitantly, wondering what Hyunwoo's reaction would be to him using his kitchen.

Hyunwoo brightened. "Really? What is it?"

"Ramen... It's the only thing I can cook."

Hyunwoo laughed. "I'm sure it's good."

Minhyuk scooped the well-overcooked ramen into two bowls and handed one to Hyunwoo. He tried a spoonful of his concoction and grimaced. The noodles and vegetables were soggy and the soup was so bland it just tasted like boiled tap water. He bit his lip as Hyunwoo tried a sip.

Hyunwoo looked up and nodded. "It's good."

Minhyuk scrunched up his eyebrows in confusion. "But it tastes ter-" he started to say, but then stopped as Hyunwoo slurped the noodles and practically chugged down the broth. Maybe his opponent had pummeled his tongue senseless.

Hyunwoo finished his bowl in record time, with smiles and thumbs-ups across the table to Minhyuk. To his credit, Minhyuk managed to choke down the ramen he had thrown together, struggling to find within him even half the enthusiasm Hyunwoo showed.

After they'd both finished, Hyunwoo grabbed a few pills from a bottle next to the sink, got up painfully and limped into his bedroom. He changed out of his grimy, blood-stained clothes without warning Minhyuk, who shyly averted his eyes.

"I'll be better soon, but right now everything just hurts, so I'm going to take some painkillers," Hyunwoo told him. "I'll probably be knocked out from now until tomorrow morning. Are you okay with sleeping on the bed together? I can definitely just sleep on the floor."

"No," Minhyuk said quickly. "Not with your injuries."

Hyunwoo let out a short laugh. "Don't forget, you still have a stab wound. I won't be able to feel the floor with the painkillers."

"Still no," Minhyuk insisted. "We can share the bed."

When Hyunwoo tried to argue more, Minhyuk shoved him onto the bed, giving him an apathetic look when he yelped in pain.

"Stay there," he ordered. He fetched a glass of water to help Hyunwoo swallow the pills.

As Hyunwoo started nodding off, thankfully sleeping this time with his shirt on, Minhyuk undressed, turned off the lights, and slipped into bed beside Hyunwoo.

~~~~~~~

Hyunwoo was still asleep when Minhyuk woke. Thin rays of sunlight filtered through the window and shone gold on Hyunwoo's hair. He had draped an arm around Minhyuk again, and overnight the light bruises on his skin had turned black and dark blue. Minhyuk found himself lightly tapping on a bruise on Hyunwoo's thick bicep and tracing around the edges of it.

He lifted himself up on his elbows and hovered over Hyunwoo, studying his face. Minhyuk poked Hyunwoo on the chest and shook him a little, but he stayed fast asleep. And before he could stop himself, Minhyuk closed his eyes, leaned in, and placed his lips against Hyunwoo's in a light, chaste kiss.

A few moments later, Hyunwoo responded, moving his lips against the other's.

Minhyuk shot backwards, jaw hung open. Hyunwoo followed his movements with sleepy eyes. Minhyuk didn't know if his heart was pounding from the fact that Hyunwoo was awake or from the questioning look of "why did you stop?" Hyunwoo was giving him.

"I didn't know you were awake," Minhyuk breathed. "I'm so sorry, I don't know why-"

Hyunwoo pulled Minhyuk down onto his chest and planted a kiss on Minhyuk's mouth to shut him up. "Don't worry about it," he murmured against Minhyuk's lips.

They only locked lips for a few seconds, but when he pulled away Minhyuk was breathless. Minhyuk couldn't find anything to say, so he averted his eyes and looked anywhere but at Hyunwoo.

After a short while, Hyunwoo said, "I like you."

Minhyuk blushed immediately, cheeks turning the same color as his hair.

Hyunwoo gave him a questioning look.

"I, um, well I like you too," Minhyuk said shyly.

Hyunwoo grinned. "Well that's a relief." 

He didn't give Minhyuk any tine to reply as Hyunwoo pulled him back down and gave him a small peck on the lips. He snuggled into Hyunwoo's chest, listening to the steady beat of his heart. Hyunwoo pressed his face into Minhyuk's pink hair and nuzzled it with his nose, breathing in his scent. Minhyuk didn't know if the warm feeling he got was from Hyunwoo's close proximity or his next words.

"Stay with me forever?" Hyunwoo murmured into Minhyuk's soft hair. "I mean... will you move in with me?"

Minhyuk nodded his head, and Hyunwoo hugged him tighter.

It was well past noon when the two got out of bed. But they headed straight to Minhyuk's apartment and somehow managed to carry all his things, mostly art supplies and sketchbooks, to Hyunwoo's apartment, even with Minhyuk's healing stab wound and Hyunwoo's cuts, bruises, and sprained ribs.

Minhyuk took up half of Hyunwoo's workout room with a mini art studio and would sometimes sketch Hyunwoo while he was exercising. They didn't see the need for an air mattress though - Hyunwoo's bed was big enough.

It was warmer at night anyway with Hyunwoo's arms forming a protective barrier around him, and Hyunwoo liked the smell of his shampoo.