Daehyun decided to wake Jongup up the old fashioned way – by lying down on top of him. Even though Jongup slept like the dead, eventually he found himself crushed under Daehyun’s weight and he started to squirm around.

“You really need to stop doing that,” he murmured sleepily.

“You need to get up,” Daehyun replied.

“How can I when you're on top of me!?”

“You'll get up once I move?”

Jongup nodded and Daehyun stood up. In response to that, Jongup turned over, hugged his pillow comfortably and kept snoring.

“Come on!” Daehyun complained, nudging the other.

“Didn't I tell you that I'm not getting out of bed today.” Jongup's voice was muffled by the pillow.

“You did, but you'll have to change your plans,” Daehyun said, crossing his arms.

Jongup didn't even spare him a glance. “Why's that?”

“Because I set you up on a date.”

That managed to stir Jongup. He moved as quickly as he could while still sleepy, sitting up and turning to squint at Daehyun.

“You set me up on a date?”

“I did.”

“With Himchan?”

“Who else!?”

Jongup shrugged. “You have some crazy ideas, I had to check.” He rubbed his eyes and grabbed his glasses in order to properly glare at Daehyun. “Tell me again why I need you to set me up on dates? Aren't you the one who needs help with that kind of stuff?”

“Apparently not. I've heard that you and Himchan are having a hard time finding the time to be alone,” Daehyun said slowly.

“You've heard? From Yongguk?”

Daehyun nodded. Jongup grinned and threw a pillow at him. “You sneaky bastard! What did you do?”

“Well, we're just going to get out of your way,” Daehyun said, shrugging.

“We? You mean you and Yongguk?”

Daehyun nodded sheepishly.

“That sounds like you also have a date,” Jongup said, smiling maliciously.

Daehyun felt himself blush. “Well, it's not really a date… We're just going to take Mrs. Dakko to the vet, get some coffee and hang out afterwards.” He shrugged.

“Daehyun, you stupid bean burrito! That's exactly what a date is! I would know.”

Daehyun covered his face. “If I start thinking of it as a date, I'll get nervous!”

Jongup laughed, shaking his head. “You're hopeless.” He ran his hand through his hair and threw a glance at the nearby clock. “How much time do I have to get ready?”

“Three hours.”

Jongup nodded. “I can work with that."

* * *

Three hours turned out to be just enough time. Jongup was in no rush, he had long gone over the dating phase with Himchan so he didn't have to pay attention to the same details that Daehyun had to.

All the while Daehyun was stressing over every little thing. After two hours he was practically ready, but he stood in front of the mirror, fixing his outfit even though it didn't need it.

Jongup couldn't watch him like that anymore, so he walked over and purposely ruffled Daehyun’s hair. “You look fine, Dae.”

As expected Daehyun smacked Jongup and once again tried to fix his hair.

“Maybe you should go out earlier. Text Yongguk and tell him I kicked you out. Because I will, if you keep this up.”

Daehyun turned to glare at Jongup. “You're acting like you weren't nervous when you were going on your first – date… See, that's the only reason I'm nervous! It's because we're treating this like a date and it shouldn't be—”

“You're only nervous because you're making a big deal out of it. It is a date, but it's not a big deal, get it?”

Daehyun stared blankly at him. “No.”

Jongup just shook his head. “Besides, Himchan was the anxious one when we started dating.”

“You and I recall those events differently.”

Jongup sighed. He grabbed his bag and searched through it until he found what he'd been looking for – Himchan’s black cat ears which Jongup kept forgetting to return.

Daehyun watched him carefully as Jongup made his way over. “What're you…?”

“You can't let Mrs. Dakko be the cutest kitten out there,” Jongup said and put the cat ears on Daehyun's head. “There. You look amazing and for the love of God stop worrying.”

Daehyun's cheeks turned red as he stared at his own reflection. “This is ridiculous…” He went to remove the accessory, but stopped half way. For some reason unknown to Daehyun himself, he decided to trust Jongup and left the ears be.

Even as he finally decided that he was ready, there was still half an hour left. He once again took Jongup's advice and texted Yongguk, telling him that he's being kicked out.

Yongguk replied that it was alright to come over earlier.

“Well, I'm off,” Daehyun announced as he grabbed his backpack.

“Good luck – even though you don't need it,” Jongup said.

Daehyun smiled and went out. To say that he was nervous would have been an understatement. He had to stop in front of Yongguk's door and take a few deep breaths before knocking, because he felt like his knees would give out.

Himchan was the one who answered. “What did you do to get kicked out?” He asked without giving a greeting first.

“Nothing,” Daehyun muttered as he went in.

“He'll be with you in a minute. Meanwhile I need you to know that both of you are snakes and I love you for it.” Himchan offered a small smile before heading out himself.

Daehyun glanced around and spotted Mrs. Dakko tangled in a pink blanket on the bed. He was glad to see her again and he smiled, going over to kneel beside her. He carefully reached out to see if she'd move away, but she didn't. She seemed hesitant but eventually moved forward and bumped his palm. Daehyun smiled brightly and started to pet her gently.

Soon after, the bathroom door opened. Yongguk’s outfit, which consisted of black ripped skinny jeans and a white tank top, took Daehyun’s breath away. All of his attention momentarily left Mr. Dakko and was instead on Yongguk.

“Hey,” he said, giving one of his signature toothy smiles.

Daehyun needed a moment to collect himself. “Hi…”

“She’s letting you pet her,” he pointed out cheerfully, as he grabbed his grey  Tokyo hoodie and put it on.

Daehyun let out a small breath of relief. As much as he appreciated Yongguk’s bare arms, he was also pretty sure that ultimately that sight would lead to Daehyun’s demise. Besides, it was cold out. If anything, he was concerned for Yongguk’s health.

“Yeah, she seems a lot less scared.” He smiled at Mrs. Dakko as she kept bumping her head against his palm. Daehyun giggled. “You must be magical.”

“I’m just good with cats, I guess.” Yongguk sat on the bed and scooped Mrs. Dakko up in his arms, along with the blanket. “We understand each other, in a way. We both need our own space and we know just the right amount of attention both of us needs… I’m sorry, I’m not making any sense.”

“You are, I get it.” Once again, Yongguk was preoccupied with Mrs. Dakko, allowing Daehyun to look at him as much as he wanted. Even so, Daehyun was the one who broke the silence, “So, did you buy the blanket for her or did you already have it?”

“I—What does it matter?” Yongguk muttered, bowing his head to hide his face.

Daehyun chuckled. “It doesn’t, I was just curious.”

Yongguk shook his head. “It’s just there so we won’t have to use my hoodie again. We’re using your backpack?”

“Yup,” Daehyun said.

Together they once again stuffed Mrs. Dakko in the backpack, making sure that she’s comfy as they transported her out of the dorm. The operation went smoothly, though Yongguk and Daehyun still were extremely dedicated to the task. There was really no one to challenge them, but they were ready. For what? They didn’t know, but they were ready.

As they got a bit further away from the building, thankfully undiscovered, Yongguk stopped to get Mrs. Dakko out of the backpack. He carried her the rest of the way. As they walked Yongguk rambled about everything he’d buy for her as soon as he got his allowance money. Daehyun enjoyed listening to it, he loved the way Yongguk’s eyes lit up with excitement.

If only he didn’t stop every once in a while to apologize for talking excessively. Every time Daehyun reassured him that it was alright, and even so there was a moment of silence every time before Yongguk could start talking again.

In the waiting room, the chatting died out. Daehyun felt the silence to be uncomfortable, unlike when they were both listening to a lecture and taking notes. Now it was just them.

As Daehyun was trying to think of something to say, Yongguk wordlessly showed him his phone.

He was showing Daehyun a ten second long video of a kitten eating. He was surprised at first, but then smiled, finding that to be a good substitute for small talk.

As they waited, Daehyun and Yongguk showed each other various cat videos, giggling quietly. They were both relaxed enough to barely notice how close they were. Thighs touching, foreheads pressed together as they looked down at their phones. Mrs. Dakko was comfortably resting in Yongguk's lap, meowing occasionally. When she did, Yongguk would start petting her absently but not moving any further away from Daehyun.

At last it seemed that he held Yongguk's attention instead of the kitten.

That changed once again when they were called in. Daehyun didn't mind being the less important kitten in the room, if it was Mrs. Dakko that was his rival. He knew he couldn't compete with her.

Besides, it was all worth seeing Yongguk’s smile when Mrs. Dakko was handed back to him. He walked over to Daehyun and placed her on his shoulder.

Yongguk chuckled and Daehyun felt like the entire room lit up. He reached up to hold Mrs. Dakko for more security. Together they made their way out.

As they walked towards the coffee shop, Yongguk seemed bouncy. He kept turning to Daehyun and attempting to start a sentence, but he’d always cut himself off.

“What is it?” Daehyun said, nudging him in hopes that Yongguk will finally say what was on his mind.

He just shrugged, keeping his gaze down. “I just wanted to thank you. If it wasn’t for you I probably never would have even thought about taking Mrs. Dakko in.”

Daehyun nodded. “Hey, no problem. After all, I got to spend time with you because of her.”

Yongguk gave him a curious look and suddenly Daehyun realized what he’d said. He took a deep breath trying to think of some way to defend himself, but upon realizing that there’s really nothing he can say to get himself out of the situation, he went silent.

“I’m glad I met you,” Yongguk said, seeing that Daehyun wasn’t going to speak.

“Why?” Daehyun blurted out before he had the time to stop himself. It was a stupid thing to say and truth to be told he had no idea what kind of an answer he could expect.

Yongguk ran a hand through his hair, looking up at the sky briefly. “I guess you’ve made things better for me by just being there. I don’t know.” He shrugged. He seemed to be embarrassed by his own answer; at the same time it was clear to Daehyun that there was so much more he wanted to say but held back.

“I have no idea how I managed that, but I’m glad I did.” Daehyun got an overwhelming urge to take Yongguk’s hand.

The newly occurred silence wouldn’t have been uncomfortable if Daehyun’s head wasn’t filled with thoughts of holding Yongguk’s hand. In fact, those thoughts were what made him widen the gap.

Daehyun was relieved when they reached the coffee shop. Yongguk was the one to take their drinks as Daehyun’s hands were occupied, with Mrs. Dakko having fallen asleep on his shoulder.

They sat in the corner by the window. The table was small enough for their knees to touch under it. The drink warmed Daehyun up, as well as Mrs. Dakko, tangled in the pink blanket in his lap.

Yongguk was quiet as he sipped his coffee, staring ahead. “I’m going home to Incheon in a week. I’m taking Mrs. Dakko.”

Daehyun pouted and looked down at his lap, beginning to pet her small head. “Oh… Well, I’m going to miss her. But better that than you getting kicked out of the dorm.”

He sighed and leaned forward across the table to have a look at Mrs. Dakko as well. “But I’ll only see her once in two weeks… I’ve grown too attached to her, I think.”

“You’ll be okay… Maybe you’ll go home more often?”

Yongguk bumped Mrs. Dakko’s nose and leaned back in his chair. He half-smiled, bringing his cup to his lips. “Unlikely.” He didn’t elaborate, he just kept sipping his drink.

“I’m sure it’ll be okay, Yongguk,” Daehyun said softly. Maybe just a little, he hoped that he would be able to console Yongguk once Mrs. Dakko was away. Not that he was happy about her leaving– he had grown attached to her as well and he wasn’t sure if he wanted to let go of what had helped him get closer to Yongguk.

Daehyun hesitated, but in the end decided to reach out. However, he changed his mind at the last moment, but as there was not much space between them to begin with, Daehyun’s hand ended up brushing Yongguk’s anyway.

It made him flinch and his gaze snapped up.

Daehyun’s heart stopped. He held his breath, thinking that he had utterly screwed up.

Yongguk slowly set his cup down and took Daehyun’s hands in his own. His heart started beating again, only much faster than normal. He was able to breathe again.

But his face was heating up quickly. “Your hands are cold,” Daehyun mumbled.

“I’m sorry,” Yongguk answered just as quietly, but didn’t move away.

As Daehyun’s face lit up more, he got an idea. He brought Yongguk’s hands up to hold them against his own cheeks, which were quite warm at that point. Yongguk was confused for a split second and then he smiled, his eyes turning into crescents. He leaned forward. So did Daehyun.

Unsettled mewling could be heard from Daehyun’s lap.

His eyes widened and he leaned back, pulling Mrs. Dakko against his chest. “Oh, I’m so sorry...”

Yongguk frowned, his hands now free to once again take his cup. “What is it?”

“I squished her when I leaned in,” Daehyun muttered. A part of him thought that Yongguk would get angry.

He shook his head and broke into a quiet fit of giggles, which melted Daehyun’s heart. “She’ll be fine.”

Daehyun pouted, letting Mrs. Dakko cling onto his shirt with her small claws. “I feel bad that I woke her up.”

Yongguk shook his head. “She’ll sleep more at home.”

Daehyun felt like their walk back home was a lot more relaxed than the one to the coffee shop. They didn’t stop chatting while they were buying snacks and until they reached the dorm.

“Make yourself at home,” Yongguk said, closing the door behind them.

Daehyun’s priority was to get Mrs. Dakko out of the backpack. He took the invitation seriously so he sat on Yongguk’s bed, placing the kitten in his lap.

“What do you wanna do?” He asked, glancing at Yongguk as he passed Daehyun some of the snacks they’d bought.

“If I’m being completely honest… I’m exhausted. I need something that doesn’t require me to use my brain—“ he hesitated, “—or communicate.”

Daehyun nodded. “Alright. Why don’t you show me your book collection? We can play some music and just…” He shrugged.

The smile Yongguk gave him was more than relieved. “You wouldn’t mind doing nothing for a while? You wouldn’t be bored?” He asked, still sounding hesitant.

Daehyun quickly shook his head. “Of course not. Do people really have to do something all the time?”

Yongguk grinned. “No. I suppose not.”

The next couple of hours were the most relaxed both Yongguk and Daehyun have spent in a while. They hardly talked. Yongguk mostly lay on his bed, petting Mrs. Dakko and occasionally scrolling through social media. He often showed Daehyun various cat and dog videos, the other half of the time keeping his eyes closed.

Daehyun spent the time walking around or sitting in various places as he read one of the books Yongguk had told him was his favourite. Not that he was nervous, or that he minded spending time that way, but his own mind kept him restless. He often stole glances at Yongguk, contemplating whether he should sit closer to him. Every now and again Daehyun dared, but his confidence never lasted and he would start pacing around again.

Those few hours later, when Daehyun had gotten tired of pacing and was sat as close to Yongguk as he dared; Yongguk sat up with Mrs. Dakko in his arms and nudged Daehyun to look up from his book.

“You wanna watch a movie?”

Daehyun put the book away and shrugged, turning to face Yongguk. “Sure.” Daehyun nudged him back. “Feeling any better?”

Yongguk nodded. “Yeah… My batteries are recharged.” He dropped his gaze to Mrs. Dakko, as if petting her was an action that required a lot concentration. “Thank you for this.”

“Don’t even thank me, Yongguk. I’m always up for hanging out without doing anything. But I’m down for watching a movie too.” He smiled.

Yongguk smiled back and grabbed his laptop.

They ended up watching several movies until the sun started to go down. At one point Yongguk excused himself briefly, telling Daehyun to keep watching. His phone was set on the bed, though Daehyun paid it no mind. He kept his attention on the screen.

Yongguk’s phone buzzed. Daehyun ignored it. Then it buzzed again. Daehyun still ignored it. Then it kept buzzing again and again until curiosity got the best of him. He didn’t touch the phone, just leaned over to see what the fuss was about.

The messages were all from Himchan. Daehyun caught the last few.

“and don’t get mad at me for reminding you, I know you’ll forget unless I do”

“you know that too”

“guk?”

“jongup’s calling. Just remember; take. Your. Meds.”

As the messages stopped coming, the screen went black. Daehyun leaned back. Yongguk walked in and sat on the bed, not even noticing his phone.

Daehyun didn’t say anything for a while. He’d hoped that Yongguk would at least look at his phone. But it seemed that he had completely forgotten, and Himchan’s reminding was called for.

At last Daehyun decided to speak up. “You, um, got some messages, it seemed urgent.”

Yongguk nodded and wordlessly checked his phone. But before Daehyun had the time to celebrate his success, Yongguk just tossed his phone away.

“It wasn’t urgent,” was all he said.

And so Daehyun became restless. He was perfectly aware that it was none of his business, nor was it his job to take care of Yongguk. He even thought that his intentions could be mistaken for pity, and that was the last thing Daehyun wanted.

But he still worried. Unfortunately for him there was no other way to bring the matter up without exposing himself as a nosy text-reader.

Daehyun was willing to make that sacrifice, for Yongguk’s sake.

He nudged him gently. “You should listen to Himchan though... You should take your meds.”

Yongguk choked on his soda, sitting up and coughing. Even when he’d calmed down he didn’t look up.

“How did you…?”

Daehyun bit his lip. “I just – I just instinctively threw a glance when you received the message... I’m sorry.”

Yongguk didn't move, keeping his face buried in his hands.

Daehyun wanted to reach out but ultimately decided against it. “It's fine, really, there's no reason t—”

“I know it's fine,” Yongguk said irritably. “I'm past that, I'm past being ashamed. But…” When he looked at Daehyun it was more than obvious that he was upset. Yongguk didn't keep eye contact too long. “It's just that you don't know me well yet and I don't want you to form your opinion about me based off of something like that.”

Not that Daehyun knew what the medication was for and to him it seemed that he couldn't form an opinion without knowing that – either way he wouldn't do that. It was none of his business, nor did it matter.

Maybe Yongguk would tell him some day, but he wouldn't ask.

“Do I seem that shallow to you?” Daehyun tried to sound playful, but he couldn't completely hide that he was maybe a little offended.

Yongguk shrugged, scooping up Mrs. Dakko in his arms. “I never know. People have done it before.”

“Well, I won't. I just have that natural tendency to worry about people.” Daehyun smiled reassuringly.

Yongguk nodded, keeping himself occupied with petting Mrs. Dakko before he was ready to look at Daehyun again. Yongguk decided to trust him – he really wanted to.

“There's another thing,” he hesitantly brought it up.

Daehyun raised his eyebrows. “Which is?”

“My meds knock me out – the ones I take in the evening do. They're supposed to do that, of course, but the thing is that I really like spending time with you and I don't wanna fall asleep on you.”

The words echoed in Daehyun's head – an argument could be made that he shouldn't have gotten so excited, but just knowing that Yongguk liked spending time with Daehyun was enough for butterflies to raise in his stomach.

His head was telling him to settle down and stop exaggerating the meaning of this usual statement, but his heart was fluttering.

“Don't even worry about it,” Daehyun said with a wide smile. “Your health comes first. And we have time to hang out – assuming that we want to be good friends and let Jongup and Himchan hook up every now and again.”

That drew a smile from Yongguk and Daehyun felt relief wash over him. He was smiling. Everything was fine when Yongguk was smiling.

“That's true.” There was a pause before he leaned over to rewind the movie a little. “But let's finish this first. I promise I'll take them afterwards.”

“Fair enough.”

Yongguk kept his promise. When the movie ended, they both got ready for bed, but Yongguk insisted on hanging out a while longer.

And who was Daehyun to complain? Him and Yongguk took turns petting Mrs. Dakko as they talked, somehow constantly coming closer to each other.

Daehyun had only noticed the proximity when Yongguk's head ended up on his thigh. As Daehyun wondered how it got there, he spaced out, therefore earning a nudge from Yongguk.

“You're not listening to me,” he said. Mrs. Dakko had fallen asleep on his chest. The image almost made Daehyun melt.

“I'm sorry, I spaced out,” he said apologetically.

Yongguk gave a small playful pout. “If you won't listen to me, I'll just talk to Mrs. Dakko,” he said sulkily, but when he glanced over he realized that she was asleep. “Oh.”

Him and Daehyun laughed.

“No one wants to talk to me,” Yongguk whined while Daehyun was still giggling.

“I'm sorry, I didn't mean to,” Daehyun said, reaching out to casually ruffle Yongguk's hair.

At least it felt casual. In reality, Daehyun had been tempted to touch Yongguk's curls ever since his head so miraculously ended up in Daehyun's lap.

“Take Mrs. Dakko, I wanna sit up,” he said.

Daehyun obliged, carefully picking up the sleeping kitten.

Yongguk sat up and rubbed his eyes, taking Mrs. Dakko from Daehyun to put her on her pillow. He tucked her into her pink blanket before returning to sit by Daehyun.

Yongguk had already started speaking more slowly and yawning more frequently. He seemed to be struggling to keep his eyes open and he was swaying almost unnoticeably. It resulted in resting his head on Daehyun's shoulder, not only that but he completely put his weight on Daehyun as if he was a large pillow.

“We should sleep,” Daehyun suggested.

Yongguk, as if he hadn't heard him, just looked up at Daehyun with hooded eyes.

“I didn't tell you that I really like your ears.”

For a second Daehyun was utterly confused, but then he remembered the accessory Jongup had put on him and that he was still wearing.

“Oh, this?” Daehyun said, reaching up to touch the cat ears. “It's Jongup's… Or at least he's borrowed them from Himchan.”

“Ah. They looked familiar,” Yongguk said, sitting up to properly face Daehyun. “Looks really cute on you.”

“Thanks,” Daehyun mumbled uncertainly. He could feel his cheeks heating up.

“Let's take a selfie,” Yongguk suggested, reaching for his phone.

“What – without the kitten? How are we going to attract attention then?” Daehyun joked as Yongguk retook his place beside him.

“We wouldn't want to wake her up. Besides, we have a kitten,” he said, poking the accessory on Daehyun's head.

He hardly had the time to react to react as Yongguk was already wrapping his arm around Daehyun's shoulder to take the picture.

The best Daehyun could do was give a shy smile to the phone's camera.

Yongguk snapped a few pictures, then showed them to Daehyun for them to decide which to post.

Daehyun was amazed by how Yongguk looked stunning in every one of them, while Daehyun could pick out one or two where he himself didn't look like a disaster.

“This one,” Daehyun suggested.

Yongguk pursed his lip. “Yah, I guess I look decent.”

Daehyun nudged him. “Shut up, you're beautiful.”

Yongguk bowed his head and Daehyun could have sworn his cheeks were dusted pink.

“No.. But you're effortless.”

“Me?” Daehyun said in disbelief. “I'm such a try-hard and even so I don't get anywhere near you.”

“I don't wanna fight over this,” Yongguk said, keeping himself busy with posting the picture.

“Well I do!” Daehyun said stubbornly.

“It takes two people to have a fight and I refuse to fight.”

Daehyun huffed. It was true, but he was quite passionate about Yongguk's beauty. Of course, he was in no position to argue so he gave up, but he had no intention of dropping the matter completely.

“Fine,” Daehyun mumbled and pouted childishly.

Yongguk finished posting the picture and put his phone aside, then turned to look at Daehyun.

“Don't sulk,” he said, clearly amused. “Although it's cute.”

Daehyun opened his mouth to reply or possibly protest against the compliment, but he was cut off and therefore immediately silenced by Yongguk pressing a kiss to the corner of Daehyun's lips. It was so subtle that it could have been just a misplaced kiss to the cheek, but it still took Daehyun's breath away.

While he was completely stunned and unable to utter a word, Yongguk was somehow able to remain nonchalant.

“I can't keep my eyes open anymore,” he announced. Yongguk kept his nonchalance as he curled up and rested his head on Daehyun's shoulder. Not surprisingly, Yongguk fell asleep almost immediately.

Daehyun contemplated it for a while, but soon it came to mind that Yongguk was probably too knocked out to notice; so Daehyun decided to go through with it.

He grabbed his phone and texted Jongup.

[dh_jung_:] UPPIE I WILL L O S E IT

[dh_jung_:] YONGGUK KISSED ME

[dh_jung_:] well not KISSED me kissed me, we didn't make out

[dh_jung_:] it wasn't even on the lips

[dh_jung_:] actually it was a little on the lips

[dh_jung_:] and now he's sleeping on me

[dh_jung_:] like, leaning against me

[dh_jung_:] I'll lose it I'll completely lose it

Daehyun didn’t take the lack of replies to heart, he knew that Jongup was probably busy with Himchan. But he needed to tell someone.

He sank into the pillows, daring to wrap his arm around the sleeping Yongguk and hold him as Daehyun fell asleep as well.