Kihyun pushes an annoyed breath through his teeth, scratching at the words etched into his skin. He leans back and pushes a hand through his hair as he tries to just finally finish this stupid project.

“Trouble?” his roommate, Minhyuk, asks from the doorway, quirking up a teasing brow. Kihyun grumbles in his throat, not liking that expression at all.

“What do you want, Minhyuk-ah?” is all he says, as he’s very obviously having trouble.

“Hoseok-hyung and I are meeting Hyunwoo-hyung and Wonnie at the bar tonight,” Minhyuk answers with a sigh. “You need a break, clearly, so come with us.” Kihyun opens his mouth to protest, because what he really needs is to finish this damned project, but Minhyuk holds up a silencing hand. “You’re going, no buts. Get changed, we’re leaving in twenty minutes.” He then leaves, shutting the door behind him and leaving no room for argument.

Kihyun groans exasperatedly at his roommate’s typical behavior. He tosses his photos onto the desk, having half a mind as he stands to go officially decline the invitation, but he pauses. He pouts slightly at the faint script peeking out from beneath his sleeve.

They’d been bothering him a lot lately, growing hot at the oddest of times and itching to no end. He’d heard that your words begin to act up whenever you’re close to your soulmate, but Kihyun doesn’t know how much stock there is in that. Minhyuk had said he hadn’t felt anything like that when he’d met Hoseok … Sure, it’s different for everyone, but he can’t help but compare it to the experiences of people he actually knows.

But, with that said, something’s telling him that if he doesn’t go out with his friends tonight, he’ll regret it. He doesn’t know why exactly he feels this way. There’s just this really annoying tugging in his gut that keeps him from opening the door, one that only goes away when he begins to actually consider going with them.

He glances over at his desk with a heavy sigh of defeat, and turns away from the door to find something to wear. He swears, if he misses his deadline because of this, he’ll hold Minhyuk fully responsible.

 

“Come on, Kyunnie,” Jooheon whines, dragging his roommate by the wrist down the street. Changkyun blanches at his overly sweet tone, making a retching noise in his throat and screwing up his face in quite the disgusted way. Jooheon merely chuckles at his dongsaeng’s typical reaction, and continues them down the path.

“I don’t see why I had to come with you tonight, hyung,” Changkyun complains as he pouts ever so slightly. “I’d much rather stay at home. You know I’m almost done with the boss level on that game we got the other day. You’re keeping me away from one of my best achievements to date!”

“Nonsense,” Jooheon chuckles. “You need to come out of the house every once in a while, and this is that once. Now stop arguing with your hyung and come on!”

Changkyun rolls his eyes, but can’t help but smile at his friend’s excitement. He lets up on his pulling away ever so slightly, allowing himself to be dragged to the only place Jooheon could be taking them.

After all, Jooheon doesn’t know about many places to go to in this dingy town, but he does have a couple of tricks under his sleeve… one of which being the only club worth going to within a fifty-mile radius.

 

Kihyun follows his friends into the club, the pounding music and blaring lights bombarding his senses. He blinks around in the moment it takes him to adjust, and feels Minhyuk pulling him off in some direction. He’s sat down at a table, and squished in between two of his friends. Once his vision clears, he sees it’s Hyunwoo and Hyungwon.

Of course it is, because, of course, Minhyuk and Hoseok are already out grinding on the dance floor.

“Want anything, hyung?” Hyungwon shouts over the dance beat filling the air. Kihyun glances over at the menu in his dongsaeng’s hands, and shrugs at finding nothing appealing.

“I’ll just take a beer,” he replies. He stands as if to go order and pay, but the younger waves a dismissive hand at him.

“I’ll take care of it,” he tells him at Kihyun’s questioning brow. “The bartender likes me, so I can get the best discounts with minimal flirting.” Kihyun chuckles under his breath at the explanation, and gestures for Hyungwon to go work his magic. Hyungwon throws his shoulders back and holds his head high, and then slinks over towards the bar. Kihyun turns his attention towards Hyunwoo at being left alone with him, and he gives the older a classically bright smile.

“How’s life been, hyung?” he asks the older in a lighthearted tone. Out of all his friends, he speaks with Hyunwoo the least, but that’s because he’s so busy choreographing routines for idol groups. Kihyun’s honestly surprised he was able to come out tonight.

“Tiring,” Hyunwoo answers simply, his gaze staying on the dancefloor, “but fun all the same. I’m doing what I love, so I can’t really complain.” Kihyun hums in acknowledgment, and nods in understanding.

“I’ve got a huge project coming up for my last final,” Kihyun tells him, “and it’s giving me hell. I just can’t seem to find the right photos to use…”

“What’s the theme?” Hyunwoo inquires, cocking his head to the side in curiosity.

“Love,” the younger man replies, his voice falling to a low grumble as he speaks the word. His markings on his wrist begin to heat up, and he instinctively starts to scratch at them under the table. “I mean, I’ve got a lot of good photos for it, but I don’t need something good, I need something great. I need a showstopper to put me over the edge of my classmates.” Hyunwoo hums in understanding, and nods a little.

“I’m sure you’ll find what you’re looking for, Kihyunnie,” he assures him, earning the faintest of grins from the younger. “You always do.”

“Thanks, hyung,” Kihyun says genuinely, his heart warming at the older’s words. Hyunwoo hums again, and turns his head to give him a reassuring smile of his own. Kihyun chuckles under his breath, and reaches over to squeeze Hyunwoo’s knee gratefully.

Hyungwon suddenly emerges from the crowd, pouting a little as he retakes his seat. Kihyun raises his brow at seeing he’s emptyhanded, pursing his lips in question.

“There’s a different guy working tonight,” Hyungwon explains, understanding easily the silent message. “He’s not open to flirting whatsoever as he’s just met his soulmate, so I don’t get a discount tonight…” He throws himself back against the booth, crossing his arms and looking like a spoiled child. “This stinks,” he adds under his breath, his pout only worsening. Kihyun coos at his dongsaeng, and lifts a hand to pull teasingly at his cheek.

“I’ll get it,” he offers, and prods Hyungwon out of the booth so he can get out. The younger complies, and slings himself back into the seat only a second later. Kihyun then turns on his heel and begins making his way towards the bar, shouldering his way through the masses as he goes.

 

“Go get us drinks, dongsaeng,” Jooheon instructs Changkyun immediately upon entering the bar. Changkyun opens his mouth to protest, but Jooheon holds up a silencing hand. “You’re cute, you’ll get them at a discount.”

Changkyun purses his lips and shoves his hands into his pockets, already heading to the bar. There’s no use arguing with Jooheon when he’s on a mission like this, he knows, though he has no idea why the sudden need to socialize. Jooheon had just burst into his room barely over an hour ago, announcing that they’re going out, and proceeded to drag him off. He didn’t even have a chance to respond until they were halfway here.

“What’ll you have?” the bartender asks the young man as he nears the shiny metal bar. Changkyun hums in his throat, glancing up at the menu.

“Just a couple of beers,” he answers after only a second of perusal, very much not in the mood for any sort of cocktail and highly doubting Jooheon would feel much differently. The bartender’s eyebrows raise, though seem to be focused on something behind Changkyun. He turns round to see a vaguely familiar brunette standing behind him, smiling a dazzling smile and looking a bit disheveled.

“Same,” is all he says, and the bartender nods and walks off to retrieve the beverages. Changkyun moves instinctively to allow the other room to lean against the bar, which the man seems to gladly take. They share a glance, but Changkyun nervously looks away. The scribbled writings on his hip bone suddenly begin to blaze, and he presses his lips together in order to keep from yelping out in pain.

He looks over curiously to see the stranger rubbing at his wrist, and his eyes can’t help but drift up to study the other’s face. It’s a bit chubby, but in a really cute way, and his brown hair only seems to further soften his visage.

“Have I seen you somewhere before?” Changkyun finds himself asking, having to raise his voice over the music. “I mean… you look familiar. Have I seen you around the quad, maybe?”

The stranger’s head suddenly whips around to face his, his hand on his wrist going impossibly still in under a second. His eyes seem to study Changkyun, and the man can’t help but squirm a little under the gaze. The stranger his lips, and his brow scrunches up in the cutest of ways.

“… But… you’re a man…”

Changkyun in a breath, his words burning entirely too hot for a single second before stopping completely. He glances down in shock towards his hip, lifting up his clothes to see. The once-black writing is now a pale white, the telltale sign they’ve just been spoken. He looks back up to stare in wonder at the stranger, unable to believe what’s just happened. His heart hammers offbeat from the music, and his jaw drops open in utter shock. Only two words remain in his mind as he tries to fathom what’s just happened.

My soulmate…