Mir was sitting on the steps of the dorm building, watching the sun set. Although he was tired, he really wanted to be the first one to welcome his friends back. It was sort of silly but he wanted to do something for them.

No, it wasn’t because of Taemin. Oddly enough, it was Dongwoon. They were roommates – and they certainly talked a great deal.

When Mir was with Taemin, they talked out their problems and their pasts, their likes and dislikes. When he was with Dongwoon, they talked about…everything. There were things Mir had never thought about that Dongwoon thought about all the time. Sometimes, he wanted to stay up all night talking to the other boy, but he knew it wasn’t possible.

They had school the next day, you know.

More importantly, he was the one who made Mir consider the value of relationships. Friends were friends for the sake of being friends, but that came with the responsibility of showing you care. It doesn’t have to be daily, or even weekly. What’s important is doing little affectionate acts, for instance, welcoming them home from a trip.

“Are they here yet?” Kikwang sat down beside Mir.

The latter swallowed an unpleasant grimace and shook his head no. “I don’t see them.”

“Oh…,” he sounded sad but Mir wasn’t looking at him, at least, not really, “well that’s okay. I actually wanted to talk to you.”

Mir turned to fully look at Kikwang. “What?”

“Well I wanted to thank you,” he admitted, flushing a bit, “for getting Dongwoon and I together. He’s the first person I’ve ever clicked so much with. We have so much in common and I just can’t think of a person better than him.” Kikwang smiled sincerely, putting an arm around Mir’s shoulders. “You’re really the best for setting us up. I can’t thank you enough for it.”

All the while, he only wanted Kikwang’s arm off of him. Not only that though, he wanted the boy away from him. “Ah…”

“No really, Mir!” he pressed on, rubbing the boy’s shoulder affectionately. “I’m really serious about him so don’t worry. Actually, I’m thinking about joining Tech Crew. What do you think?” Kikwang was grinning widely, hopefully. “Dongwoon was telling me about what you guys do there and it just sounds so cool.”

 No, no, no. “If you want I guess,” Mir mumbled, getting to his feet and shaking his shoulders as casually as he could, “I have to go study.”

Kikwang’s face fell and he stood up as well, touching the other boy’s arm. “Wait, don’t you want to wait for them? I’m sure they’re almost here.”

“No it’s okay,” he replied a tad too sharply, “you can wait for them.” Mir didn’t care in that moment. He just needed to get away from the whole situation. The feelings coursing through his blood were annoying and frustrating. There would be other chances to welcome Ryeowook and Sungmin home. It wouldn’t matter, not this time.

Mir set off before Kikwang could stop him.

Soon after, the bus pulled in and Dongwoon descended the steps, expecting to see Mir waiting for them in front of the dormitory. What else would the kid do during that hour of the day? He ate at the beginning of Dinner Time so obviously he should’ve been free already.

“Woonie!” Kikwang exclaimed, running up to hug and kiss his boyfriend.

Dongwoon returned the touch sweetly, still distracted by the missing Mir. “Hey…I’m back,” he greeted, looking around the empty space.

There were words being spoken to him but all of it sounded like background noise. Where was Mir? He had so much to tell him about the trip! “Kikwang,” Dongwoon interrupted the other boy’s ramblings, “do you know where Mir is?”

A sad little shrug and he replied, “Mir was here just a few minutes ago but he left for some reason. Oh, but on the bright side, he thinks it would be good for me to join Tech Crew! Isn’t that great? Then the two of us can spend time together,” Kikwang grinned, sliding his arms around Dongwoon’s neck, “I really miss you when you’re at club practice so I guess this solves our problems.”

“That’s good,” he mumbled, idly returning the kiss to his lips.

Sungmin and Ryeowook stumbled out of the bus a few moments later, the latter’s legs tangled around Sungmin’s lean hips. They were drunkenly bumbling towards the dorm room, limbs and mouth messily mashed and twisted.

“What happened…?” Kikwang pointed eyes large and confused.

Dongwoon shook his head, “They’ve been like that all day. We had to pry them apart a few times on the bus because the kissing noises were getting unbearable.” He shuddered at the memory and moved away from his boyfriend. “Do you want to get something to eat?”

The boy shook his head, taking Dongwoon’s hand and pulling him towards the Honors Dorm, “I wanna go do what your friends are advocating,” he chuckled, winking.

Sighing, Dongwoon smiled and allowed his body to be dragged.

***

Mir arrived back at the dorm late that night, thoroughly exhausted. There was definitely no way he would stay up with Dongwoon now – nor would he want to stay up any later. After a quick shower he would hurry to bed and once his head hit that pillow, sleep would come right away.

The plan was going well up until it was time to head back to the dorm room to get clothes on. Mir unlocked the door, internally sighing with relief at the sight of an empty room. Once the door slammed shut though, he caught sight of Dongwoon kneeling by his open closet, digging through stuff.

“Crap...,” Mir muttered under his breath.

“You’re finally home,” Dongwoon stated, rolling his eyes in exasperation. “I’ve been waiting forever to tell you about the trip!” He shut the closet, smiling at Mir. “You can get some clothes on first I guess.”

Mir flushed, hurrying over to the closet and grabbing some pajamas. It took roughly thirty seconds to get changed and once he did, Dongwoon turned back around and flopped down on his bed. The other bed was quickly taken by Mir who stayed sitting up so they could face one another. “What is it?” he asked.

“Okay,” and then Dongwoon went off on a tangent about the haunted house and broken railing, and then the weirdest part of his night – the freaky scent. “I was just getting out of the shower and I suddenly smelled really strong roses. But, I had no idea where they were from because everything around the mansion was dead. Do you have any idea?”

Horror stories just didn’t scare Mir. That was the bottom line.

That was why he easily said, “Maybe the wife’s restless spirit wakes up around the witching hour. Roses usually follow around ghosts who weren’t properly buried.”

Dongwoon covered his face, suddenly slumping forward. “Holy , that’s so scary,” he guffawed, shuddering and standing up. “Why would you say that man?” he laughed, tackling Mir to the bed tiredly. A long sigh fell from Dongwoon’s lips, “Okay, I think I’m done thinking about that scary mansion. We’re never going there for another bonding trip.”

“You guys didn’t bond?” Mir asked, chuckling a little at the weight of his friend’s arm across his chest. The limb was floppy like a fish and when Mir moved, it rose and fell.

“Oh, that’s what I forgot to say,” Dongwoon muttered, “I’m pretty sure Ryeowook and Sungmin bonded just without the rest of us…if you know what I mean.”

Mir blushed and wriggled around on the bed. It was strange to think about the two of them doing anything. “That’s…at least they’re happy,” he attempted, unsure what else he could say about the topic.

“I had a dream while I was staying there,” Dongwoon grunted, eyes quietly gazing sideways at Mir. “We were being honest with each other. I sort of liked it.”

“We’re not…usually honest?” He wasn’t sure why he did it, but then it was happening before he really knew what was happening. Mir touched the other boy’s hair softly, fingertips running through the chestnut tresses hesitantly.

Dongwoon smiled despairingly, mimicking the touch by running his own hand through Mir’s dark hair. “Not nearly enough these days,” he responded, “it’s sad, huh?”

“Why can’t we tell the truth then?” Sleep was slowly slurring his words, eyes fluttering closed every few seconds.

“Because,” Dongwoon scooted closer, pushing Mir’s limp hand down, “the truth is painful.” He watched the boy’s breaths become even and then repositioned him underneath the blankets. “And…,” tenderly, he kissed the slumbering boy’s lips, “we’re not as strong or as crazy as the Wife.”

So let’s keep stealing these quiet moments and silent touches until someday, we’re not scared of pain anymore.