EIGHT – Hide n' Seek

They have no idea when exactly did it start but it has become a secret between Sungjin, Bambam and Chris. After that one time, Sungjin had made the two younger boys promised to keep it a secret. He knew the other boys would to no end. And if they spread it to the girls; the whole company might end up knowing it since there's Nayeon.

That girl definitely couldn't hold things back when she started talking.

"3, 2, 1! I'm coming!" Sungjin shouted as he started moving about the dorm with his arms stretched out since his eyes were being covered by a piece of cloth.

On the other side of the room, we have Bambam hiding behind the curtains and Chris under the dining table. Both having their hands on their mouth, trying to hold back their excitement.

"Where are you two?" Sungjin said in a singsong tone, continuing to move about the house with his arms stretched out. He knew Bambam's isn't one to hide himself well and there are only a few spots that Chris only hides at but each time, he had decided to just drag the time longer. It's the only way Sungjin can at least do to help those two keep their innocence in them since being a trainee can be really tough and he had seen both of them looking all disheartened because they couldn't do well in something.

Sungjin finally walked up to the curtains with the help of his sense of touch to guide him there and caught one of them. He took down the cloth from his eyes and was greeted by Bambam's wide smile as Chris' laughter filled the air.

"Bambam, your turn!"

That was one of the few times the three of them had fun in the dorm like this. And it's usually when they're sure the other boys won't be back soon and they usually set an alarm to warn themselves.

The rest of the boys were certainly feeling weird out because each time Sungjin was being left alone with the two kids, they are always going for ice cream even when the weather was cold. But little did they know that it was a code between them.

"Hyung hyung! I want ice cream." One of them will tell him excitedly and Sungjin usually just laughed it off.

"Alright, let's go out and have them later?"

Their secret was kept pretty well for at least a few months until a certain day, when Wonpil's timetable was changed slightly. It was definitely a weird sight for him when he stepped into the apartment. He could hear Sungjin's voice echoing in the living room.

"Where are you?"

That was what Wonpil heard. What is he looking for? Did he manage to smuggle his pet in or something? He didn't know Sungjin actually have a pet? Curious, Wonpil stepped in more and saw the blindfolded Sungjin moving about with his arms guiding him.

He blinked.

Once.

Twice.

What was it that he's witnessing. Wonpil didn't announce his return and just watched the amusing scene happening in front of him. He had spotted Bambam and Chris hiding behind the couch and under the coffee table respectively. No one noticed his return yet. Wonpil continued to watch as Sungjin stepped nearer to the coffee table.

Move, Chris. He's coming!

Wonpil shook his head, why was he getting excited and nervous? He watched closely, unaware that he's clenching his fist because of how he's feeling. And Sungjin finally caught the younger boy under the table.

"Aish!" That was Wonpil's immediate reaction, which caught the others' attention. The three of them turned to the door and stared at Wonpil.

"Uh surprise?"

Sungjin could only facepalm at the whole situation while a goofy grin plastered on Bambam's and Chris' face. Sungjin had thought that it's going to be the start of him getting endless teases but what Wonpil said next surprised him.

"This is going to sound weird." Wonpil smiled sheepishly, "But I want to join."

Bambam and Chris cheered loudly, running up to him with the blindfold and held it out to him. Wonpil laughed at their enthusiasm then took it from them.

"Shall we start?" He grinned widely then turned to Sungjin, "Hyung, you should hide too! I'm really good at this."

Sungjin could only laugh at what he said, proceeding to hide by the kitchen counter. It's still a little ridiculous yet amusing for an 18 years old, a 17 years old and two 14 years old to be playing Hide and Seek in their dorm.

This went on for another month, with Wonpil as their new addition. So sometimes when Wonpil was alone with the two 14 years old, they will be playing too. And the rest of the boys started feeling way more weird because why was Wonpil buying them ice cream too now? That's too much ice cream for them, right?

That was when Mark, Brian, Jaebum and Jinyoung decided to unfold that mystery. Something was up and they knew it but they had no idea what. However, they were pretty sure that their four other roommates were up to something.

That Sunday morning – it was their off day – they've pretended that they would be going out for a meal. They had purposely made it seemed like they wanted everyone to go but, Sungjin, Wonpil, Bambam and Chris rejected them all at once. And that eye contact the four of them had made, that definitely didn't escape from the eyes of the other four.

Mark, Brian, Jaebum and Jinyoung all nodded, pretending that they understood and left the apartment together, staying outside for a while.

"Did you see how they looked at each other first?" Jinyoung whispered to the other three while they're huddling together.

"I can't believe I'm doing this." Jaebum muttered and Mark nodded beside him.

"Come on, you're curious too!" Brian nudged them both which they didn't reply because they both knew that it's the truth.

"As planned, we will sneak in after a while." The four boys nodded firmly at each other; a determined look on their face.

They waited for another 15 minutes and slowly opened the door quietly; they've not locked it on purpose. One by one, they stepped into the house again, careful enough to make any sound. Jinyoung who was the first one stopped in his tracks while he stared at the scene in front of him.

Wonpil had his eyes blindfolded as he moved around blindly. Sungjin, Bambam and Chris, on the other hand, were all hiding. Jinyoung took a few steps back turning around to face the other three.

"What was it?" The three of them peeked over Jinyoung's shoulder, not knowing how to feel for a while.

"Hide and Seek?" Mark asked first which Jinyoung nodded in reply. The four of them kept their eyes on the game.

Bambam is going to get caught.

That was what went through each of their minds and they had absolutely no idea why that excites them. Maybe because it's been a while since they've played anything like this. It had always been training, practising, school and some outings together but like this? It's really been a while.

The game ended when Bambam got caught. The four of them appeared together and the other four finally noticed their presence. Sungjin and Wonpil could only give them a sheepish smile. It was quiet for a while but Jinyoung was the one who broke it.

"I want to play too."

Bambam and Chris smiled even wider then turned to the other three older boys, anticipating for their replies.

"Well," Brian was the one who stepped forward first, "There's no harm playing around like this."

Six pairs of eyes glanced towards Mark and Jaebum. This time Mark was the one who stepped forward first. After all, he had played this a lot of times with his siblings and he missed it a little.

Seeing that Jaebum was still contemplating, Bambam and Chris walked up to him and hooked their arms with Jaebum's, each on a side and pulling him towards the group. Jaebum gave all of them a sigh of defeat.

"Let's play then."

Bambam and Chris cheered the loudest.

Three 18 years old, three 17 years old and two 14 years old, in the midst of their training schedules, shared the same secret of playing Hide and Seek in their dormitory.

Next Chapter: Off Days

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For some reason, I was smiling when I wrote this. I think I love writing the kids them a lot. So I got this idea from the fact that Sungjin used to play hide and seek in the dorm with Bambam and Chris. I read it somewhere so- I haven't been showing much of the girls, I know, which is why in the upcoming chapter, it will be a group chapter. Which means, most of them, if not all will be in the chapter. I know some of you guys want to see them interact which is why I'm going to just openly tell you that, it will happen. It will also appear frequently in the subsequent chapters. 

Anyway, back to this chapter. Please tell me you guys enjoy baby BamChris HAHAHA. In this chapter, I'm trying to bring out the fact that they were indeed still kids. Not literally since they range between 14-18 but somehow, I think them training hard, they will still have a kiddish side in them. Make sense? If things are getting overly ooc, do tell me!!

I've nothing much to add on so, ciao!!

ddeokbxkkii (leen)