Jaebum ran a hand over his face as the door shut behind their happy maknae. “Aish, I’m an idiot.” he muttered to Jinyoung. “I can’t believe I didn’t notice sooner. Now that I think about it, he’s been acting weird for weeks. I thought he was just tired…”

Jinyoung tsked at him and walked across the room to turn off the lights for bed. “It’s not your fault. I was the worst about teasing him. I’m more annoyed with myself than anything. I should have known I was making him upset.”

JB sighed again and fell back onto his mattress in the dark, pulling up his leg to tuck himself under his covers. “I guess we all could have done better.” he said, pushing his hair off of his forehead and readjusting his pillow.

“Yeah...can I sit by you for a minute?” Jinyoung asked from the door, and was answered by an annoyed groan and a rustling of sheets, which meant that JB was making room for him. He smiled and walked over to the bed, lifting up the covers and tucking himself in quickly.

“Aish, Jinyoung-ie, why are you so needy?” JB said in an accusatory tone, but he gave himself away by turning his body to face his closest friend and making sure that he had enough room.

“Jaebum-hyung, you can fool the rest of the members with your big bad macho act, but I know you love to cuddle. Especially when you’re upset. Nothing gets past me.” Jinyoung said nonchalantly, snuggling into the warm mattress.

Jaebum scoffed, but slung his arm over the other boy anyway. “You’ll never hear it from me.” he responded.

“I know.” Jinyoung smiled, “but it’s still true. Goodnight hyung. Let’s take good care of Yugyeom tomorrow. If the other boys see us doing it, they probably will too.” He closed his eyes.

“Hey, who said you could sleep here?” Jb asked roughly, but Jinyoung pretended not to hear him and fake-snored instead. “Ah, chincha?” he asked, but Jinyoung kept pretending to sleep, a tiny smile on his lips. “What am I gonna do with you?” JB muttered, but pulled the boy closer to his chest anyway, and closed his eyes as well. “Goodnight Jinyoung-ie”

 

 

 

 

Yugyeom practically skipped down the hallway to his room, feeling better than he had in weeks.

“What was that all abou-” Bambam asked from his bed as Yugyeom finally came back to their room, but was interrupted as a huge force pummeled him back into his mattress.

“I LOVE YOU BAMBAM!” Came the happy, nasal squeal as Yugyeom wrapped his arms and legs around Bambam’s thin body and nuzzled his nose into his friend's neck, his eyes clenched shut and a huge dopey grin on his face.

“Ah! Yugyeom, I can’t breathe!” Bambam said, tapping Yugyeom’s arm to get him to loosen up.

“I love you so sosososo much! You are the best friend in the whole world, Bamie!” Yugyeom said, ignoring his friend’s protests and holding him tighter.

“Yugyeooooom stahhhp.” Bambam whined, and squirmed in his best friend’s iron grip in an unsuccessful attempt to break free. “Geez did you win the lottery or something? I thought I heard you crying out there. What’s going on?”

“Nothing, I’m just so happy.” Yugyeom said, smiling and nuzzling into Bambam’s neck.

“Eeeeew.” Bambam complained, shoving Yugyeom’s head away from him, but laughing at the boy’s silly antics. “So you weren’t crying? I was so sure…”

“I WAS crying but then I talked to JB and Jinyoung-hyung and now I’m NOT crying and why can’t you just love meeee.” he whined, loosening his grip enough for Bambam to move again.

Bambam laughed and freed his arms from where they were trapped against his chest to pat Yugyeom on the back. “Okay, okay, I love you too, I’m glad the hyungs made you feel better. But what happened? And why all the sudden skinship?”

“I just want you to know that you are my favorite person in the whole wide world, and that I love you, and that I am grateful that you try not to ignore me.”

Bambam frowned a little and brushed Yugyeom’s hair back from his forehead. “Were you upset because of the way the other members were treating you?” he asked gently, and the still positive maknae paused before nodding against his best friend’s chest.

“Yes. I told them how bad it made me feel when they teased me so much and called me mean and a bad maknae, and I apologized for acting bad sometimes.”

“You’re not bad.” Bambam said, and began running his fingers through his friend’s hair.

Yugyeom sighed contentedly and felt the tension leave his body as the nimble fingers travelled through his hair. Bambam always showed affection with his words, but could be very reluctant to do skinship with his close friends. “I’m trying to be better.” Yugyeom murmured, practically purring as Bambam began to massage his scalp.

Bambam smiled at how happy this made his maknae and was reminded that although he was much larger than him, Yugy liked to be comforted too. I’ll look out for you better, my friend. Bambam said to himself as he the boy’s head. “Yugy, it’s really late. You need to go to bed.”

Yugyeom’s smile turned into a frown and he shook his head, clutching Bambam’s body close to himself again.

“Ah, okay fine, you can sleep with me tonight, but I still have to turn the lights off.”

Yugyeom shook his head again, not loosening his grip on the smaller boy the slightest bit.

Bambam laughed in disbelief, rolling his eyes and reaching over the koala-like boy to grab his phone off his nightstand. With difficulty, he managed to dial Jackson’s number and put his phone against his ear, even with Yugyeom snuggling up to him and nestling his head under his chin.

“Hey Jackson...I know what time it is, I’m sorry...could you please do me a favor….could you come to my room and turn the light off...I would turn it off myself if I could but I have a Yugyeom attached to me...no, he really won’t let go...what? No you may NOT take pictures!... JACKSON!” Bambam yelled into the phone, and about five seconds later the door burst open.

“AWWWW!” Jackson squealed, and immediately started snapping photos of the two boys snuggled up in bed together. “Mark-hyung, Youngjae, come look at this!” Jackson called over his shoulder, and Bambam blushed fiercely as two more pairs of feet could be heard padding down the hallway.

“AH, CUTEU!” Youngjae yelled upon sight. Bambam stuck out his tongue causing Youngjae to throw his head back with laughter. Yugyeom could not be deterred from cuddling his Bam, and smiled happily throughout the whole endeavor with his eyes closed and his head tucked under Bambam’s chin.

Mark came in next and began laughing and making fun of Bambam to get the red-faced boy to blush even more.

“Hyuunngs stahp!” Bambam whined.

“Aw you’re so cute Bamie!” Jackson said, and put his phone away long enough to run over and jump onto the two boys and wrap his arms around them both. “My little babies!” he teased, and sloppily kissed them both on the cheek. Yugyeom smiled and laughed while Bambam said “eeew.” Youngjae, not one to be left out, yelled “Incoming!” and jumped on top of them all, laughing his head off and smothering the boys beneath him.

“Youngjaeee, I can’t breathe!” Bambam yelled, causing a giggling Mark to come over and try to pull Youngjae off. However, he forgot how much stronger Youngjae was and ended up being pulled onto the bed as well. They all began rolling around on the bed and pushing and pulling to try to gain space until somebody (probably Jackson) started tickling, and then it became a competitive tickle fight. Yugyeom finally released his grip on Bambam when Mark tickled under his arms, and the two youngest boys tickled back with all of their might, but were eventually defeated by the three older boys.

They all fell back onto the small bed exhausted when Bambam and Yugyeom finally surrendered, and held onto one another so that no one would fall off the bed.

“Aish, Bambam, turn on your side, there’s not enough room.” Jackson complained.

“It’s my bed!” Bambam retorted, but turned over anyway, allowing the touchy boy to wrap his strong arms around him and spoon him securely against his chest.

Yugyeom was jealous of the cuddling friends, and carefully crawled over Youngjae to press himself into his former position, with his head under Bambam’s chin. Jackson freed one of his arms from around Bambam’s thin torso to hold onto Yugyeom’s arm as well.

Youngjae giggled and snuggled up against Yugyeom’s back, pressing his nose into the nape of the tall boy’s neck. Yugyeom giggled at the sensation and smiled, happily surrounded by his favorite people. “Mark-hyung, cuddle with us!” Yugyeom called with his eyes shut.

“Fine, if you insist. Let me turn off the lights first.” Mark got up to close the door and switch off the lights, and then used his phone’s flashlight to find his way back to the bed. The only spot left was on the edge next to Youngjae, so Mark decided to show the boy some rare love and got in behind him, hooking his arms under Youngjae’s armpits and pressing his chest to the boy’s back.

“Hyuuung.” Youngjae whined, his head forced away from Yugyeom's warm neck, but smiled as a strangely sweet Mark nuzzled his face into Youngjae’s shoulder and pressed a quick kiss there.

“Mark, you never do skinship with me!” Youngjae said, surprised.

“What can I say, Yugyeom inspired me.” Mark said with a smile, and Yugyeom grinned into Bambam’s chest.

“You’re welcome Youngjae.” he bragged, and Jackson laughed and squeezed his arm. Yugyeom breathed in deeply, the expansion of his chest filling in any of the little spare spaces between him and the boys around him, and all of their familiar scents mingled to meld into the smell he had come to associate with the word home. 

“I’m so happy right now.” he said.

“Me too.” said Jackson

“Me too!” said Youngjae.

“Mmm.” Mark agreed.

Bambam rolled his eyes. “This is kind of nice, I guess.”

“So you’ll let us all sleep in your bed again?” Jackson asked earnestly, poking his head up to look down at Bambam.

“Never,” Bambam replied with a mischievous laugh, “Now everyone go to sleep before I change my mind and kick you all out!”

Yugyeom laughed softly. “Goodnight Bamie. Goodnight hyungs.” he said, and was met with a chorus of bright “goodnights” in return.

“Our little maknae.” Mark murmured sleepily from the other side of the bed, and that was the last thing Yugyeom registered before he fell into a peaceful slumber with a smile on his face.