~~~

6:32 AM

MONDAY

"Well, look at you, you're finally learning," Jungah says sarcastically, tightening the belt to her Hello Kitty bathrobe as she makes her way down the stairs. "Is this your first time making toast without completely burning it?" She gently pats her newly washed hair, which she's tied up in a tight bun, whilst making her way over to the kitchen table. "So, today's the big day, huh?" she hums, opening up the cabinet and retrieving a box of green tea bags.

Sipping his coffee, Jongin nods before taking a bite out of his toast. "Yes and yes," he replies, shifting a little in his seat. He's only sitting on the edge, barely, courtesy of Sehun suggesting they 'give it a shot' last night after Sara announced she was going to call her friend. As anxious as he might have been, Jongin is at least glad they did it in the privacy and comfort of Sehun's bed because his spine is still aching from being repeatedly slammed against the wall two days ago. "Wait, how did you know?" he asks suddenly, because if he remembers correctly, he hasn't told Jungah about Nationals (but then again, his head has been a mushy mess ever since Friday so he figures he shouldn't take his own word for it).

"Baekhyun messaged me," Jungah says and even though she looks like she hasn't gotten any sleep the night before, there's still an excited glint in her eyes. "What time does your train leave? Do you need me to make you some lunch?" She turns on the tea kettle.

Jongin shakes his head as he picks up his mug. "It's only a two hour ride," he mumbles into the steaming brown liquid before checking his watch. "In one and a half hours, and I'll buy something at the station, don't worry," he adds, even though he knows getting Jungah to make him lunch for free is a much better than idea than spending 25 dollars on a sandwich. His phone buzzes two seconds later and he mumbles a quick apology before fishing it out of his pocket, all whilst trying not to move around too much in his seat. 

iMessage

From: Sehunnie <33

Got no Wifi atm so I'll have to message you this way instead :')

Took this yesterday before we left for the museum btw!! It's my new phone wallpaper btw <3 You're so gorgeous I can't handle ittt

Promised id send you the pictures from the museum yesterday so here they are (awful quality but hey, at least i tried) <3 

It was super fun!! Even though you were the prettiest masterpiece in the entire place ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

Barely able to hide his smirk, Jongin's fingers scatter across the keyboard before he places his phone on the table. He clearly recalls his and Sehun's little adventure at the exhibition yesterday (which they ended up at on a whim considering they were in the process of searching for a fast food place and somehow ended up getting lost in Town), especially how Sehun had followed him around and practically shoved his phone in his face every chance he got (in fact, Jongin wouldn't be surprised if it turned out Sehun didn't even pay any attention to the actual exhibition), which Jongin didn't even protest against, mainly because he's grown so incredibly used to Sehun randomly snapping photos of him no matter the circumstance lately, even though he usually ends up looking awkward and stiff in 99% of them. Despite that, Jongin finds himself reddening a little at the (inevitable, but yet oh so embarrassing) cheesy remark that Sehun just had to end his message with. Of course.

"I'll miss you when you leave," Jungah says sincerely, even though the blank expression on her face would lead Jongin to believe otherwise. He blames it on her fatigue. "I'll have nobody to yell at for being such a slob for three whole days," she sighs while retrieving a gold rimmed teacup from the cupboard and placing it on the counter. "How will I survive?!" She throws her hands in the air and Jongin doesn't know if he should weep or smack her silly.

"I'll only be gone three days, it's no biggie, I'll be home before you know it," Jongin chuckles, stuffing the last piece of toast in his mouth. He low key feels a bit bad for leaving Jungah with nobody else but their Father, but then again, he figures, no, knows, she'll spend the days with and sleeping over at her friends. His phone vibrates and he hurries to pick it up.

iMessage

From: Sehunnie <33

THAT WASN'T EVEN THAT CHEESY!!!!

Okay maybe a little, but hey, I'm fricking trying over here, gimme a break

Stop calling me an idiot all the time you little jerk (￣□￣」) 

Anyway, you got everything? Don't wanna leave anything behind!

Glancing over at the hallway, in which his duffel bag (he'd emptied it of his hockey equipment and filled it with three days worth of clothes and other things he figures he'll need to keep him entertained throughout the two hour train trip) is sitting, Jongin nods, mainly to himself, before typing out a quick 'Yes ❤️💕', but he doesn't even get to put his phone down again when it suddenly buzzes in his hand.

Messenger

(Just now) Byun Baekhyun

JONGINNNN YOU'VE GOT A DECK OF CARDS AT HOME DONT U????? WELL CAN U BRING IT??? PLZ?? THANK U

Jongin blinks in confusion, wondering why on Earth Baekhyun is showing interest in something as dull as playing cards, especially at a time like this, but he shoves his many questions to the back of his mind before replying with a simple 'Sure'. The coffee is doing wonders at keeping him awake, since he'd been feeling like a walking dead (with an obvious limp) a mere half hour ago. Jongin actually contemplated staying in bed a bit longer, since the pain in his rear made it downright impossible for him to get any beauty sleep, but all it took was for Sehun to text him 'Good morning, babe' and 'I'm looking forward to seeing you today' and Jongin was out of bed and dressed less than twenty seconds later. He downs the rest of the liquid before brushing his hands together and checking his watch for the nth time that day (even though he knows checking the time every two minutes is completely useless, missing this train would screw him up for life and Jongin isn't even going to deny it).

The train, which he managed to book at the last possible minute, thanks to Jungah and her master ticket booking skills, is set to leave the station in roughly one hour and ten minutes and if he remembers correctly, Jongin assumes he should arrive in New York at roughly 10 AM, which isn't too bad, considering the fact that he could have taken the bus like Sehun, which the latter told him would take an hour longer. Now that he thinks about it, Jongin has no clue what he's going to do when he actually gets to New York, his best guess is that he's going to be awkwardly roaming the streets for an hour while waiting for Sehun's bus to get there. As much as Jongin is looking forward to the whole thing (especially getting to spend time in New York with Sehun, hopefully alone), he's definitely not looking forward to that.

"You should probably leave in ten," Jungah says, checking the time on her phone as she sips her tea, which she somehow managed to make without the brunet noticing. "And it's a good thing New York's mainly got street and fast food or else I have no idea how you'd make it longer than a day," she adds with a cackle and Jongin sort of regrets finishing his toast just now, because he would easily have picked up a piece of the leftover crust and tossed it right in her face.

With a low hum of agreement, Jongin slowly gets out of his seat, wincing a little when he stands up straight. When Jungah offers to put away his empty mug and plate, he thanks her before zipping his sweater up to his chin because it's probably less than two degrees below zero outside. He makes sure his phone is fully charged, and that he's packed his charger and portable charger (he made the mistake of accidentally forgetting his portable charger at home last year on his trip to Europe, and to say that the 13 hour long flight that subsequently followed merely consisted of him wanting to take his own life would be a vast understatement) after walking (or rather, limping) over to his duffel bag. He's packed a few books that he knows he won't be reading along with his Nintendo, at least three extra sweaters (one of them being Sehun's, the one Jongin wore on Friday whilst getting ready for prom and sort of forgot to return), two bags of gummy bears, his toiletry bag and, of course, the teddybear Sehun bought him two weeks ago, which Jongin stumbled upon on a whim under his bed at dawn whilst turning his room upside down looking for some clean clothes to bring with him. He knows Sehun will to hell and back as soon as he sees it, but Jongin figures he'll have to live with it just this one time.

Jongin checks his text messages to assure himself that he hasn't, somehow, accidentally deleted the SMS ticket he recieved two hours ago. When he sees that he hasn't, he puts his phone away before checking his watch again. After doing some quick math, Jongin deduces that he's got at least five minutes to spare, so he spends them raiding his room for the box of playing cards he knows he keeps somewhere inside the drawers to his desk. He finally finds them, after a brief struggle (Jongin makes a mental note to make sure Baekhyun pays him good money for his efforts), and dusts them off before shoving them in his back pocket. They're a little dented and squashed, but Jongin figures Baekhyun will have to deal with it before hurrying downstairs, but not after stepping in front of the mirror to make sure he doesn't look all too death like. His hair looks fine, but his under eye bags are exceptionally prominent, and Jongin quickly applies some of Jungah's concealer on his face (and perhaps also a layer of BB cream and a pinch of the gold eyeshadow he knows Sehun likes so much).

"Don't trip or you'll spend the next few days in the hospital wearing a body cast instead of cheering the man of your life on," Jungah says when Jongin comes rushing down the stairs like his rear end is on fire (which, Jongin figures, wouldn't be all that far from the truth). "Are they on the bus right now, by the way? They were leaving immediately, weren't they?" she asks as Jongin brushes past her to get to his duffel bag. "And wait a minute, look at me...are you wearing makeup? Have you been raiding my makeup bag? Although on the other hand, your makeup skills are certainly better than your cooking skills, that's for sure."

"Uh, I think their bus leaves at seven," Jongin says absentmindedly, ignoring Jungah's comment as he scratches the back of his head as he mentally checks off the items on his list of things to bring with him. Once he assures himself that he's got everything (the teddybear being the most important thing for reasons unknown), he takes a deep breath to recollect his thoughts before promptly walking over to the shoe rack and grabbing his favorite pair of sneakers. 

"Be careful and take care of yourself now, alright? Make sure you send me some pictures and videos of the game, if you don't sit there drooling throughout the entire thing, that is," Jungah says, leaning against the wall as she adjusts her bun. "Send me some pictures of Times Square, as well, if you can! I've always wanted to go there!" she adds with a squeal and Jongin suddenly finds it very strange how neither of them have seen Times Square with their own eyes before despite living only a couple of hours away from New York City.

Jongin chuckles before nodding a little. "I will," he hums, fingers working with the laces. He remembers Sehun telling him he'd specifically reserve him a front row seat at the game, so he figures getting parts of the game on tape won't be a problem (that is, unless he gets so captivated by Sehun that he ends up forgetting to check his phone during the entire match). When he finishes tying both his shoes, he stands up and sends Jungah a half smile. "Well, I guess I'll...see you on Thursday, I...guess," he says dumbly, pressing his lips together.

"I wish I could go with you, but hey, you deserve some alone time with the man of your life, especially in New frickin' York of all places", Jungah says before walking over and giving Jongin a big hug, making sure not to smudge his makeup. "I could pick you up at the station on Thursday if you want me to," she says after leaning away. She walks over to Jongin's duffel bag and picks it up, handing to the latter with a small smile.

"That would be great," Jongin says sincerely, running a hand through his combed hair. He slings his bag over his shoulder, making sure it sits comfortably against his back, which is still cramping, before he sends Jungah a nod. "Don't burn the house down while I'm gone," he chuckles half jokingly, and it's not until Jungah puts her hands up in defeat that he turns around and walks towards the door, the early morning winds nearly blowing it open all the way after he pushes down the handle.

~

As he makes his way down the gravelly path (at a considerably slow pace considering his entire lower region cramps painfully with each step he takes), shivering a little as a dozen cold gusts of wind continuously hits him in the face, Jongin is hit with the thought of whether or not Sehun is going to be forced to share a hotel room with his teammates, like Junmyeon and Chanyeol, for instance. Jongin bites his lip when he realizes that his assumptions are probably correct, and he swallows because if Sehun is going to be sharing a room with any of his teammates, that means he's going to be spending the nights by himself, quite literally alone in New York City, and it's not until that thought strikes him that Jongin inwardly screams because as far as he knows, Jungah only helped him book his train tickets and nothing else. Jongin hopes New York has got a wide selection of last minute hotels or else he figures he might as well spend the next three nights sleeping on the streets.

It's strange, really, because as much as he's looking forward to Sehun's game, Jongin can't help but find the hours he's going to be spending together with Sehun after the playoffs way more intruiging than the game itself, probably because for once in a long time, Jongin won't have Baekhyun and or Jongdae all up in his face while being their usual loud, irritating selves, and the idea of walking around New York City while having Sehun all to himself makes Jongin's entire body tingle in anticipation (and it sort of makes up for the fact that he hasn't really got anywhere to stay), even if it means needing to put up with Sehun's constant need to take pictures of him in front of literally everything they come across, just because it's New York. If Jongin remembers correctly, there's a giant Toys R' Us somewhere in the heart of the city and he makes a mental note to convince Sehun to take him to said place, which will probably end in Jongin dragging Sehun inside the store by the back of the shirt while the latter cries in protest, but even so, he'll stop at nothing to visit it.

When he approaches a crossing, Jongin feels his phone buzz thrice, with three texts, and he quickly fishes it out of his back pocket, nearly getting hit by a cyclist in the process.

iMessage

From: Minnie

Tell Sehun he's got my support!!! Have fun and remember not to pig out all too much while you're there X) Coach will roast you if you turn up to practice twenty pounds overweight ;) Where are you right now, by the way? On the train?

From: Sehunnie <33

Babee where are you???

From: Unicorn Boy

BRING ME BACK A PIZZA 

Choosing to only reply to Sehun's text, Jongin bites his lip in both concentration and confusion.

To: Sehunnie <33

Just left the house, why do you ask?? Where are you?? :/

As he scans his surroundings for any signs of another cyclist, only to find none, Jongin is about to put his phone away so he can resume his short walk to the train station when his phone suddenly buzzes in his hand.

iMessage

(Just now) From: Sehunnie <33

At school obviously!! Hurry up <3

Jongin blinks in confusion but he shoves all his questions to the back of his head before choosing to reply to Minseok's text, because Minseok is one of his best friends and Jongin would probably feel guilty for the rest of his life if he were to forget to reply to or simply ditch Minseok's texts. Nobody ditches Minseok's texts.

To: Minnie

Im on my way to the station, but Sehun must've needed to pick something up at school I'm assuming he wants to meet up before we part ways so im on my way there now :) Good luck at practice!!!

Putting his phone away, Jongin feels his chest swell with happiness because he figured Sehun would be boarding his bus by now, and he's sort of thankful they chose to stop at the school first, presumably to pick up a spare football or helmet, because Jongin knows that getting to hug Sehun one last time before they meet again in roughly three hours is the only thing he wants right now, not to mention it's a golden opportunity for him to return Sehun's sweatshirt. After some quick calculations, Jongin comes to the conclusion that if he sprints, he'll make it to school just in time to say goodbye to Sehun before heading to the station, and he subsequently feels his phone buzz in his pocket but he opts to avoid it for now, figuring he can check it later, as he turns to the right and picks up his feet a bit.

~

Jongin arrives at the school building roughly two minutes to seven and he briefly stops to catch his breath as he sprints up the few steps leading to the building. He has no idea where Sehun is, but Jongin figures he must be around here somewhere considering he wrote 'School' instead of 'Sports hall', and Jongin suddenly feels awfully guilty in case he's currently holding Sehun, or even worse, his entire team up and the thought makes Jongin walk a little faster (not to mention he's on a tight time budget himself, and he would much rather not run after Sehun's bus as a result of missing his train by two seconds). Thankfully, nobody has come up to him and asked him if he's the one who danced with and kissed Sehun at the prom two days ago, which makes Jongin breathe a little easier since he'd rather not get murdered on the day of Sehun's big game, and he's about to text Sehun where the latter is when he's on the first step. However, Jongin barely makes it past the threshold when something catches his eye and, when he looks to the left, he barely makes out the back of what must be a white bus. He doesn't think he's ever run so fast towards anything in his entire life.

Sehun's sports bus is a two story bus, a double decker, painted an elegant shade of white, the words 'STARDIUM' written on either side in big, bold blue and red letters. As he approaches the vehicle, Jongin feels his heart tremble a little when the silhouettes of whom he assumes must be Chanyeol, Junmyeon and Sehun come into view, and after jogging a little faster, Jongin barely gets a chance to utter a hello when Sehun nearly tackles him to the ground in a bearhug, practically lifting the brunet off his feet before he leans in and presses their lips together. Almost like one of those airport reunions in the movies, Jongin thinks, trying to control the blush creeping up his neck when Sehun puts him back down. The smell of gasoline lingers in the air, along with a consistent buzz of excitement, and Jongin is so caught up in racking his brain for something to say (because he definitely does not want to break out into a three hour long ramble and thus miss his train) that it takes him a painfully long time to realize the two heads that are peeking through the open door a few feet away.

"Finally, you're here!" Baekhyun exclaims, descending the three steps to the bus and jogging over to Jongin, who looks like a question mark. "Please don't tell me you forgot the cards," he says excitedly, zipping his hoodie, which looks much too big for him (honestly, Jongin didn't even know Junmyeon liked the color purple, but it looks awfully good on the redhead).

"It's cold as hell out here," Jongdae mumbles with a shiver, wrapping his arms around his torso. His head is a tousled mess and his eyes look droopy, which makes Jongin think he got out of bed not so long ago. Next to him, Chanyeol pats his head like a dog. "Jesus, I'm going back in before I die of hypothermia," he adds after a few seconds, turning around and disappearing from view. 

Jongin remains glued to the ground for an embarrassingly long time before he blinks in confusion. At one point in his dazed state, he reaches into his pocket and retrieves the box of playing cards before handing them to Baekhyun, who accepts it with an excited 'Thanks!' before scurrying back inside the bus, presumably to join Jongdae. After nodding a little at Junmyeon and Chanyeol, who nod back, Jongin scratches the back of his ear, seriously wondering what Baekhyun and Jongdae are doing here, let alone on the bus, although Jongin figures them tagging along to New York isn't a surprise since, surprisingly, Junmyeon and Chanyeol are playing, but the fact that they're on the bus itself makes Jongin blink in confusion. Well then.

"Prepare yourself for three hours of brain melting boredom," Junmyeon mumbles and it doesn't take Jongin long to notice that he isn't smoking, which nearly makes the latter's jaw hit the ground in surprise. "Please tell me you brought your Gameboy, and stop fidgeting so much, you look like a moron," he adds, turning to face Chanyeol, who only shoots back with an 'It's cold, shut up!'. "Jesus Christ, they better haave pillows and blankets in there or else I'm suing. Alright, well, let's get in since I'm freezing my off." He gestures at the bus before turning around and walking towards the doors.

Checking his watch, Jongin figures if he turns on his heel and sprints towards the station in the next two minutes, he should make it to the station just in time. He watches as Chanyeol mutters something incoherent under his breath before the latter quickly boards the bus. A feeling of sadness settles in Jongin's gut when only he and Sehun remain out in the cold, the latter smiling down at him with that disgustingly charming grin of his and Jongin would have jumped up and down in happiness on the spot if it wasn't for the fact that they're seconds away from parting for the next three hours. Not wanting to cause a scene, however, Jongin swallows before clearing his throat and nodding a little, because the last thing he wants right now is to hold Sehun and his team back even more by forcing Sehun to stand out here with him. 

"Isn't this exciting?" Sehun asks, eyes glittering and honestly, he looks more excited to see Jongin than he is about the fact that he's about to play one of the biggest matches in his life. Despite having woken up at five in the morning, he looks as fresh faced as ever with his hair newly washed and a light gray hoodie hugging his chest and Jongin seriously wonders how he does it.

Jongin bites his lip in fear of Junmyeon yelling at him to stop holding Sehun up. "It is," he says, eyes occasionally shifting up so he's looking at the window, just in case Junmyeon might be staring down at him with a scowl on his face. Checking his watch again, he sees that he's only got thirty minutes until his train leaves, and it'll take at least fifteen to get to the station, so he awkwardly takes a step back. It makes him sad knowing he'll be going three hours without seeing Sehun, but he figures texting the latter hearts will have to do in the meantime. 

Fully expecting Sehun to nod before waving goodbye, Jongin is rather surprised when the former only furrows his eyebrows in confusion. "What're you doing?" Sehun asks, cocking his head to the side and sending Jongin a funny look.

"Uh." Jongin blinks, dumbly gesturing behind him. "The, uh...the station?" He checks his watch again. "But I'll see you soon, okay? I'll text you."

Chuckling low in his throat, Sehun raises a perfectly groomed eyebrow. "What are you talking about?"

"New York," Jongin says dumbly, staring at Sehun like the latter is an idiot. "How'd you expect me to get there? By flapping my arms?" he huffs in exasperation, fighting the urge to roll his eyes because even though Sehun is captivatingly charming, he can also be rather clueless sometimes. "I need to go, I'll miss my tr-" He doesn't even get to finish his sentence, which ends in a surprised squawk when Sehun suddenly takes a step forward before grabbing his hand and dragging him towards the bus and, the next thing Jongin knows, a blast of heat that smells like a combination of rubber and gasoline hits him in the face, effectively defrosting every capillary in his body.

Now, Jongin doesn't know if it's the coldness or the fact that he's inside Sehun's sports bus that makes his brain function at an alarmingly slower rate than usual, but he finds himself unable to walk in a straight line as Sehun guides him down the walkway before they stop at a staircase. Mind still reeling, Jongin finds himself reaching out and grabbing onto the railing before he walks up the stairs and he immediately hears Baekhyun and Jongdae's muffled voices above him. The brunet's mind seems to come back to life the moment he places his foot down on the top step and he blinks in awe when he sees two rows of empty seats as well as a small table, at which Baekhyun and Jongdae are busy playing 'Go Fish', the latter failing miserably since he doesn't seem to have any pairs, and Jongin quickly puts his duffel bag on the first seat he lays his eyes on because his spine is threatening to snap in half from the weight. Junmyeon and Chanyeol sit close by as they keep their eyes glued on the latter's Gameboy. Jongin is actually surprised that nobody on the bus seem as hyped as they should be considering the circumstances, but on the other hand, if he had to wake up at five in the morning just to drag himself to a bus on which he'd be sitting for three continuous hours, Jongin figures he wouldn't be a walking ray of sunshine, either.

"Don't look so confused all the time," Sehun laughs, ruffling Jongin's hair. "Take a seat, we've got the entire upper floor to ourselves since the rest of the guys chose to sit down there," he adds, running a hand through his hair. He immediately notices the brunet's obvious limp when the latter walks over to one of the seats and he chuckles under his breath.

Seemingly reading Sehun's mind, Baekhyun snickers. "Why're you walking so strangely?" he asks loudly with a pointed look at Jongin. Chanyeol, Junmyeon and Jongdae's heads all turn to look at the brunet, who reddens to the point that he can't even formulate a coherent sentence. "Nevermind, you do you, I guess," the redhead says, putting his hands up in defense.

"As long as you don't end up being like those girls in the movies, you know," Jongdae hums, eyes scanning the cards in his hands, "the blonde bimbo who goes around getting ed by the entire football team," he adds for good measure and Chanyeol nearly bursts a vein laughing. Even Junmyeon's permanent scowl seems to disappear (very briefly, though) as the latter chuckles low in his throat.

"Let's not get too ahead of ourselves here," Sehun simply says, even though he's clearly doing his best not to burst into laughter, too and Jongin fights the urge to roundhouse kick him. "There there, they're just playing around," he chuckles, patting the brunet's head like a puppy (now that he thinks about it, Jongin actually does look like an angry puppy; an angry version of Vivi, which makes Sehun adore him that much more).

Choosing to ignore Jongdae and Baekhyun's existence for the time being, Jongin huffs. "I'm not confused," he retorts, cheeks flushed a pretty shade of coral as he sits down on a random seat, not even bothering asking why Yifan and or Kyungsoo chose not to sit with them (because truthfully, he couldn't care less). The cushion is soft and squishy underneath him, which is perfect for his aching backside, and he leans back before looking out the window. They've got to be at least twelve feet up off the ground and he sure is glad he isn't acrophobic. "I'm not! I just didn't think I'd be able to ride with you guys," he hisses, reaching out and whacking Sehun in the chest when the latter only hums in disbelief. "I hate you, God-"

"Thanks, but you don't," Sehun says as a matter-of-factly before brushing past Jongin, taking a seat beside him. "And you do look confused like, all the time, it's like your default expression." He pokes Jongin's cheek, the latter swatting his hand away. "And why wouldn't you be able to? It's a free country!" He puts a hand on his chest in false surprise.

Mumbling something incoherent under his breath, Jongin crosses his legs as he listens to the inaudible mumbling of the rest of Sehun's team below him. Now that he thinks about it, he realizes he hasn't even met the rest of Sehun's team, the other nine members, but Jongin figures that if they're anything like Junmyeon and or Chanyeol, he can live without knowing who they are, no offense to either of them. "You know what I mean, and I'm not confused," he mutters, playing with the watch on Sehun's wrist. A part of him is actually tempted to set it to Tokyo time just to mess with Sehun but he quickly decides against it in fear of falling victim to another one of Sehun's merciless tickle fits. "Are you nervous, by the way?"

Sehun is silent for a minute before he shakes his head. "I feel like we've practiced enough lately, even Yeol, believe it or not," he chuckles, shifting into a more comfortable position. "I mean, I bet I'll be freaking the hell out right before we enter the field later on, but as of right now, not so much," he hums, his voice suddenly turning smug. "Wait. Hold on-" He moves to pat Jongin's eyes, only for the latter to turn his head away. "Man, eyeshadow is so your thing," he chuckles, shaking his head in amusement.

Jongin watches Baekhyun handing over what he assumes his threes to Jongdae, who gleefully accepts them, for a while before a wave of exhaustion washes over him and, the next thing he knows, he's resting his head on Sehun's shoulder, the latter's hoodie serving as a pillow. As his heart beats unnaturally fast, Jongin makes a mental note to text Jungah and tell her to unbook his train ticket before it's too late (although he figures he'll have to pay her back with cash from his own pocket otherwise since he figures it's only fair), his hand unconsciously grabbing onto Sehun's when he catches a whiff of the taller's perfume and Jongin is surprised that Sehun apparently had time to buy a new bottle in such a short amount of time. A few moments later, Jongin hears the bus doors close, closely followed by Sehun, Junmyeon and Chanyeol's coach doing a roll call, to which the three of them answer with a loud 'Here', before he feels the bus slowly moving.

"New York, isn't this a-may-zing?!" Chanyeol exclaims a little louder than necessary and Jongin assumes he must've had too many energy drinks prior to getting on the bus. He subsequently loses his game of 'Snake' and nearly throws his Gameboy in frustration. " my ing life, man."

"Shut it, you dolt, that was right in my ear," Junmyeon hisses, shoving Chanyeol away, the latter nearly colliding with the window beside him. "And I guess, although I'm mainly looking forward to seeing the Cowboy in Times Square," he adds, rolling his eyes when Chanyeol, Baekhyun and Jongdae burst into a fit of childish giggles. "Shut the up, y'all, for God's sake, what are you, five?"

"Hey, Myeon, there's a video of you singing and dancing to 'Barbie Girl'," Chanyeol laughs after putting away his Gameboy and pulling out his phone instead. He attempts to shove it in Junmyeon's face, the latter nearly breaking one of his ribs trying to keep him at an arm's distance. "It's glorious! I didn't know you could go that high!" he says and based on what he hears, Jongin also fights back a laugh because the shrill voice he's hearing sounds more like Cyndi Lauper than Junmyeon (he doesn't say it out loud, obviously, since he gladly wants to keep his ribs intact).

"Don't remind me," Jongdae says in agony, features controrting into a grimace as he recalls the events. "I think I spent six hours puking, no kidding," he adds. "Go fish."

"At least you didn't beat up the DJ 'cause you didn't like his taste in music," Chanyeol cackles, eyes glued on the screen and Sehun fights the urge to bury his face in his hands when he hears himself hollering something along the lines of, 'You play ty music, go away!!'. "Look, security even had to drag your away!"

"We sorta owe Yifan an apology, though, if I do say so myself, though," Jongin hums against Sehun's chest, his voice nearly inaudible. "I mean, Yixing texted me saying he saw him, well...handling us after we apparently got kicked out after Sehun's...fight," he snickers. "I mean, don't take my word for it, since Yixing was faced as hell, but yeah." He goes back to resting his head on Sehun's shoulder.

Chanyeol blinks before scratching the back of one of his elf like ears. "...Never thought about it, but yeah, Yifan did seem extra grumpy this morning when we said hi to him, so I guess," he says before shrugging nonchalantly. "Anyway, look at this video!" He presses 'Play' and a distorted verse to 'I Kissed A Girl' blares through the speakers on his phone. "Man, it's like looking at yourself through another dimension or something, jeez. Don't you wanna see yourself, Myeon? C'mon!"

"Only if you'd like my foot up your ," Junmyeon grumbles, clearly trying his hardest to avoid looking at Chanyeol's phone.

"Ooh, ," Baekhyun snickers while handing a few of his cards to Jongdae. After the latter accepts them, he looks up at Jongin. "Aw, aren't they just the cutest," he coos after Sehun presses a kiss on the brunet's forehead. "And hey, who's willing to challenge me to a pizza eating contest when we get there?" he adds, nearly lurching forward when the bus suddenly comes to a halt.

"Gross," Jongdae says with a grimace. "I dunno, I just wanna see my baby play." He turns around and blows Chanyeol a kiss, the latter immediately reciprocating, and Junmyeon pretends to vomit down his own shirt. 

"Me too," adds Baekhyun, nodding in agreement, his bright red locks bouncing up and down, and it's not until then that Jongin realizes his hair is no longer brown. 

Interlocking his and Sehun's fingers, Jongin's eyes roam around his surroundings until they land on the traffic outside the window. The vibrations caused by the engine is surprisingly comforting and he knows it's only a matter of minutes before he's lulled to sleep. Jongin doesn't reply, mainly because he's so incredibly exhausted and because Sehun's shoulder is so soft, and he's on the brink of falling asleep when he suddenly hears Sehun's voice.

"Coach managed to check us all into a hotel at the last minute, and I convinced him to let me be with you, by the way," Sehun says into Jongin's hair, ignoring Baekhyun's and Jongdae's snickers to his left. He crosses his legs and traces invisible patterns onto the brunet's hand. "Speaking of which, I made Sara clean up the entire bathroom yesterday." A small laugh escapes his lips, causing Jongin to squawk in surprise.

"Seriously?!" Jongin blinks before he emits a loud whine. "Sehun, that's so cruel of you, dammit," he moans, lightly smacking Sehun's arm. He makes a mental note to somehow thank Sara for her work because he figures it must've taken at least five hours to wipe the brown hair dye off the bathtub, walls and carpet. Christ. "Speaking of which, you're no longer brunet," he adds with a pointed look at Baekhyun, who beams.

"Yep, I managed to fix it myself, with a little help, of course," Baekhyun laughs, pointing to Junmyeon, who groans. "Oh, and we'll be rooming together, right?" he asks, repeatedly poking Junmyeon's leg. When the latter only nods, he beams again.

"Our rooms are like, right next to each other, so if you four could take it upon yourselves to stay quiet at night that would be great," Jongdae deadpans, handing Baekhyun four cards. 

Baekhyun shakes his head. "No can do, Dae, dating a footballer means taking advantage of their killer stamina, which this guy's definitely got," he chuckles, jabbing Junmyeon's leg and ignoring Chanyeol's loud cackle. "Especially now that he's stopped smoking," he adds and a wave of surprised noises fill the air. 

"Only because you threatened to dump my on the spot if I didn't," Junmyeon grumbles, removing his jacket and placing it on top of him like a blanket. Jongin thinks he looks like a mad baby bunny.

"So that's why you're in such a ty mood?" Sehun asks, yelping when Junmyeon tries slapping his arm. "I kid, I kid, that's great, good for you, really, keep it up." He sends Junmyeon a thumbs up, Jongdae doing the same, before turning back to Jongin, who hasn't said a peep in a while. "Did you see the pictures I sent you earlier, by the way?" he asks lowly, carding his fingers through the brunet's hair with his free hand.

Nodding weakly, Jongin snuggles his face into Sehun's chest. This definitely beats sitting on a dumb old train for two hours by myself any day, he thinks to himself. "I did and I looked awful," he mumbles, only shrugging when Sehun asks him something along the lines of 'How great do you think the bubble tea in New York is on a scale of 1 to 10?'. Jongin closes his eyes afterwards, successfully blocking out Jongdae and Baekhyun's bickering over who cheated, as well as Chanyeol's loud cursing as he continues to lose his game of 'Snake', only for his eyes to fly open when his phone suddenly vibrates in his pocket. 

 

For once I don't look Godawful, Jongin thinks, snuggling his face deeper into Sehun's chest as he presses the 'Like' button. For some reason, the excessive amount of hearts in Sehun's post makes his own heart flutter for reasons he can't explain. The strawberry taste of the lollipop he'd been eating as the pictures were being taken still lingers in his mouth and Jongin is about to put his phone away when his phone vibrates again, and this time, despite that he feels like he's ten seconds away from entering a coma, Jongin feels himself grinning impossibly wide.

  Relationship request from Oh Sehun.

Eyes glued on the screen for what feels like forever, it takes Jongin a considerable amount of time to process the words before him. He feels his head start to spin again for way too many reasons, his grip on Sehun's hand tightening as he bites his lip, because as much as the warmth in his chest is threatening to make him self combust from the billions of different emotions crashing down on him all at once, there's still a feeling of worry looming above his head and Jongin unconsciously grips his phone tighter as he re-reads the words. However, it doesn't take long for him to realize that he should probably say something, and Jongin clears his throat dumbly before looking up at Sehun, who has got a twinkle in his eyes. It's a glint that Jongin hasn't seen before and he would be lying if he said it didn't make his heart tremble just a little. 

"There you go looking like you've seen a ghost all over again," Sehun laughs, although quietly so nobody around them can hear, before he Jongin's cheek. "What's the problem?" He crosses his legs and stares down at the brunet in awe like he's seeing his newborn baby for the first time.

Jongin continues to stare at Sehun with the same confused expression before he mentally smacks himself. "Uh." He scours his head for something to say, only to come up with nothing. "The girls, everyone," he finally croaks out, the words seemingly falling out of his mouth after Sehun only chuckles in amusement. Even though he figures he must look like he's trying to solve the world's most complicated math problem, he hopes Sehun can hear, or at least sense, how unnaturally fast his heart is racing (which Jongin assumes Sehun can, considering their sides are pressed together). "Um. Yeah--"

"Screw 'em," Sehun simply says, tone surprisingly bold as he shrugs nonchalantly. He sends Jongin an expectant look and the latter doesn't even bother protesting.

Now, as much as he dreads the idea of getting run down by Sehun's "fans" (he hates using that word for multiple reasons), the one thing Jongin dreads even more, on top of that, is Sehun's fans coming after Sehun himself and he hesitates for a bit, his thumb hovering above the 'Accept' button. He wants to click it, his fingers are itching to slam down on it, but the thought of Sehun getting into all sorts of trouble afterwards is enough to make Jongin hesitate, for he would never be able to forgive himself is something were to actually happen (maybe he's simply being paranoid, but based on what he's seen so far, he doesn't think it's far fetched to assume the worst), but Sehun is practically beating him with his look of encouragement and it's not until Jongin looks up again, only to see what he can only describe as stars in Sehun's eyes, that he finds himself hitting 'Accept', his heart racing as he watches the page refresh itself.

Over the sound of Baekhyun and Jongdae arguing over if New York is mostly famous for its pan pizzas or hamburgers, Jongin bites the inside of his cheek when he's redirected to Sehun's profile, his eyes subsequently focusing on the last few words a little bit below the latter's profile picture (which, as Jongin notices, he has yet to update). Momentarily, Sehun lovingly kisses the top of his head before the bus slowly stops at a red light.

 In a relationship with Kim Jongin

~~~

THE END.